


Beyond the Falls

by MindPrince



Series: Shiftverse [3]
Category: Creepypasta - Fandom, Danny Phantom, Gravity Falls, SCP Foundation
Genre: Dipper and Danny are sort of together, Explicit Language, Ghost King Danny, Jeff has a potty mouth, rating upped for jeff related violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-04
Updated: 2019-02-12
Packaged: 2019-04-18 04:26:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 56
Words: 106,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14205027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MindPrince/pseuds/MindPrince
Summary: Three years after the events of Weirdmaggedon, anomalous activity has spread across the globe. But something else was awakened during that summer. The opening of the Nightmare Realm has permanently weakened the barriers between the realms of reality and the Other. That otherness is now leaking into the world, and with it, creatures that humanity had long since relegated to the realm of myth and legend. And those creatures are not content to hide in the shadows.With Stan and Ford busy in their own research it's up to Dipper and Danny to investigate. But they're not alone; help is coming in the from a person as dangerous as Bill Cipher himself, perhaps even more. Will they be able to keep this madman on their side? Or will they be forced to watch their world be consumed by the darkest creations of mankind?





	1. Murder by Moonlight

Slim white fingers wormed their way in the gap of the window. Pianists' fingers, his mother had called them. If only she knew what he used them for now. He slid his hand under enough to finally raise the window just enough for him to slip in. His stomach clenched tightly and he hunched over for a moment, waiting for the pain to end. He'd waited too long to kill, and his body was making him pay for it. Luckily someone had called to him just in time

  
The delicate points of his feet made child's play out of sneaking through the house; silent even on the hardwood floors. He crept along the hall, spotting one door cracked open. He peeked in. The room was rather cute; painted in soft colors and full of toys. The plush bears and tigers, however, practically reeked of repeated perjuries. Likely a gift of apology from tonight's victim. He slipped in and stood at the young boy's bedside. In the pale light from the window he could just see the bruises on his arms. He scented blood on him and felt his back squirm in response. He smoothed the boy's hair and leaned in close. "You'll be free soon." He whispered.

  
Leaving that room wasn't easy; every instinct he had screamed for him to stay, to protect him from the next time. But experience told him it was better to keep that next time from happening. So he left. The room he was after was just a few doors down; the boy had left a small mark beside it. His mark; the same one that had called him to help. The light was on, but there was no sound behind the door. Most likely his victims had fallen asleep without bothering with it. Better for him.

  
He inched the door open, just wide enough to let him in, and stuck to the floor as he made is way to the bed. Good, both of them were there. The guilt of their crimes covered them like a sheet of whale blubber; heavy and suffocating. His back squirmed again; he ignored it. Every second without blood on his knife was agony. His stomach squelched, sending acid burning up his throat. He coughed it out and tried to ignore the way it ate into the floor.

  
Unable to wait any longer he drew his beautiful, trusted friend from his pocket, and climbed on the bed. He straddled the mother first, the boy's blood scent strongest on her. He covered her mouth and nose, then leaned towards the bedside lamp, turning it off. Her eyes shot open as her breathing was cut off. Her final sight being the knife plunging once, twice, into her breast. As her heart stilled her husband woke, saw his dying wife, and tried to flee. "Such loyalty." He hissed sarcastically.

  
The man struggled with the door knob, fear and adrenaline making his hands shake. With his back nearly writhing he laughed and fell forwards, finally releasing a snake's nest of ribbon-like tentacles; nearly invisible in the now dark room. They pressed against the door and snapped around the man's wrists, dragging him back screaming. He held the man in the air, wrapping more tentacles around his legs.

  
Then he pulled.

  
With a final almighty scream the man was torn in two. Blood splattered across the floor and on the bed, liberally coating the killer. He dropped the remains and climbed off the bed, letting the blood coat the bottom of his feet, like a pen. He enjoyed leaving the delicate spiraling marks at his works; the police never failed to be perplexed by the clearly inhuman tracks. Now all that was left was to sign the painting, so to speak. Gathering more blood on his hands he painted the walls of the room with his trademark smile.

  
Artwork complete he left the room, quietly shutting the door and erasing the sigil near the baseboards. He went back into the boy's room and, not wanting to smear more blood on him, nudged him with a tentacle. The boy woke, barely, and stared at him with bleary eyes; uncomprehending. "You're free now. I've done my work."

  
He squeezed out of the window to the sounds of a frantic phone call. _'Kid's a good actor.'_ He thought as the chorus of police sirens filled the night. Then with the barest flicker of the air; he was gone. Until the next time he was called.


	2. Packages and Patterns

Dipper stretched with a noisy groan. He had just finished uploading his latest video which left him without much to do. He slid in the computer chair to the opposite side of his desk. Calling it a desk was a bit of an understatement; a late birthday gift from his Grunkle Ford, it was a baroque masterpiece. But Ford had built it to hold everything he needed; from his computer and camera equipment, to his notebooks and various research materials. Yes, everything had a shelf or drawer in the desk.

  
Speaking of notebooks, he opened the drawer that held them and started sorting through them. After getting home he had begun the task of translating all the information he had gathered over the that first summer to a more legible format. It was not easy. Between his own terrible handwriting and the speed he wrote at; sometimes it was like trying to translate scratch from a chicken on cocaine. He was getting through it though; slowly but he was doing it. Though the stack seemed to grow every summer he spent in Gravity Falls.

  
As he was putting together the section on flesh-eating spirits when the computer gave a cheerful ding; letting him know he had been pinged in his site's forum. He slid back to it and clicked the notification. It brought him to the section on magickal symbols and showed him a rather new thread; only a few people were active in it.

"Found this while walking my dog." He muttered, to himself. Then he shrugged _'Probably just another troll with that Operator Symbol again. Starts every year around Halloween.'_

>   
>  Brzrkr: saw it on a rock. my dog wouldn't go past it. took a pic and messed with it as much as i could since the mark was hard to see. sorry it sucks I don't do photoshop [Weird mark on rock](http://prince-of-mindscape.tumblr.com/private/image/172574666085/tumblr_p6n2eu9w6E1rf1jvd)
> 
>   
>  venuism: I usually follow the Strange Crime threads here. Think I've seen that in a few posts.
> 
>   
>  whasti: yeah the cheshire butcher police find those sometimes fuck if i know what it means try asking @LordDippingsauce
> 
>   
>  venuism: Didn't they say the guy uses them to mark where he's going to kill next?
> 
>   
>  whasti: they always say that kinda shit
> 
>   
>  *** LordDippingsauce has joined ****
> 
>   
>  whasti: the man has arrived whats the verdict
> 
>   
>  LordDippingsauce: It's definitely not what the police think. It's some sort of sigil. But without knowing the intent of it I can't say what kind. But if your dog didn't like it then that's bad. Universal bad sign; animals know these things. I'll ask my partner if I can get him. He's pretty good at figuring these out. I'll try to message you as soon as I can.
> 
>   
>  *** LordDippingsauce has left ***

  
Dipper logged off. That mark. He felt something while looking at it. He growled and smacked his forehead with his fist. "If only I was in Gravity Falls. I have no idea how to contact Danny from here!"

  
While he rubbed his eyes, letting out the occasional groan of frustration he felt the air crackle with static; the sudden taste of lime on his tongue. A ghost portal opened to his left and he stood, ready just in case something bad came out. From the portal came, to his surprise, a werewolf; wearing a green hoodie and sweatpants. In its paws was a plain paper wrapped box.

  
Dipper waved cautiously. "Um, hello? Are you lost?"

  
The werewolf shook its head. "Mi estas Wulf. Vi estas Dipper, korekta?"

  
"Uh, yeah."

 

"Danny petis min alporti tion al vi."

  
"Oh, cool. Hey can you wait a second?" Dipper quickly printed out the sigil picture and handed it to Wulf. "Can you give that to him?"

  
Wulf nodded and left, closing the portal behind him.

  
Dipper set the package on his desk and stared at it. Even though it was from Danny he couldn't help but hesitate a little before opening it. Inside was a spike of crystal, tinged with faint colors like an opal, wrapped in copper wire to let the leather thread tie on. A hole had been drilled through it for some reason. As he lifted it out he felt a familiar tingle of energy that made him grin. He looked back in the box and spotted a slip of paper. He pulled it out and read.

  
_"So I know Halloween's not really a gift holiday but I thought you would enjoy this. It's my horn! Now before you panic (because I know you're going to); don't worry. It fell off on its own. So apparently I'll be looking forward to shedding it each year. Go figure."_

  
Dipper snorted a laugh.

  
_"I decided to send it to you because you gave me something you made to help me. It only seemed fair to do the same for you. See the hole in it? If you look through it you can see things that are hiding. Not ghosts, but other things. Just be careful. Some things don't like being seen by humans, and that horn will only do so much to keep them away. Hope to see you soon, Danny."_

  
His signature had been partially smudged by a pair of wet noses. Dipper smiled and put the amulet on. He felt it buzz gently against his skin; much like Danny's own energy. Just like that the stress brought on by the odd mark was gone, melted away by both the amulet's energy and the thought that Danny had chosen to give him an actual part of himself; strange as that was. But Danny was always strange, it came with the territory. And it would be kind of cool to see if anything faerie-like were around town. He went to the window and lifted the horn.

  
He didn't see much until he looked towards the south end of the neighborhood. Standing in the middle of the street was a. . . something. It looked a bit like a monkey. If the monkey had been the offspring of Edward Scissorhands, shaved and then run over a few times. It looked around, not seeing him, then loped awkwardly away. Dipper dropped from the window and gripped his chest, heart pounding. _'Okay, that was NOT a faerie. Or it was a really messed up one.'_ At least it hadn't seen him.

  
He hoped.

  
(Gravity Falls; a few hours earlier)

  
Danny gave a frustrated growl as he rammed the tree again, burying his horn in the soft heartwood. Even though he felt splinters dig in his skin and across his horn he still felt it itch. After nearly a week of this he was at his wit's end. The itching was driving him crazy!

  
Three days ago, a layer of frost had formed on his horn that he couldn't get rid of. That night he had woken up to a dreadfully persistent itch. No tool or potion could melt through the frost, and no amount of scratching could stop the twinging that felt like it was burrowing into his skull. Yesterday the frost had melted; he thought that was it, but the itch, oh the itch! It just got worse!

  
Which was why he was here; far away from any human or creature that could see him, bashing his head against a tree like a mad animal. He backed up one more time, giving a snort before rearing and charging the poor tree. His foot slipped in the mud and he wound up slamming his horn sidelong on the trunk. There was a crack like a gunshot and the itching stopped.

  
He looked down at his horn, its opalescent glow fading as it lay in the grass. Still in shock he touched the spot where it usually was. His probing fingers were met with a shallow pit and thin layer of ectoplasmic blood.

  
His eyes went wide, he grabbed the horn and ran to the shack. He didn't bother with the front door, instead phasing straight through to the lab. "FORD? FORD! HELP!"

  
Ford, who was tweaking his anomaly tracker at the workbench, nearly hit the roof. He dropped the tracker and ran to the main floor where Danny was circling in a panic. His eyes were blanked out and Ford knew he wouldn't get his attention before he hurt himself or damaged something. Making as little noise as possible he rushed the endigo, tackling him and throwing him on his stomach. Pinned like this, Danny's body reacted on instinct, slowing his breathing in an attempt to hide from a perceived threat.

  
After several long minutes of deep breathing, Danny calmed down. So Ford let him go, returning to the bench to make sure he hadn't damaged the tracker by tossing it aside. He picked up a screwdriver and started opening the casing. "So, Danny, what had you so worked up?"

  
Danny stared at him blankly for a second, still a little confused. Then he snapped out of it and showed him his broken horn; pointing to his now bare forehead. Ford chuckled and pulled a small first aid kit from one of the bench drawers. He took some gauze and pressed it to the hole. "Looks like all that itching meant you were going to shed. Perfectly natural, deer do it all the time. It'll probably be an annual thing. Now all that leaves is what to do with the horn. You were just probably too new to do it yet."

  
In the end he had it fixed up to be worn as a necklace. It still carried some of his power in it, and would make a good tool for supernatural endeavors. Then headed to Box Ghost to get it wrapped, popped by his friend Wulf, and asked him to bring it to Dipper. Having wanted to meet the human for awhile, Wulf eagerly agreed and took off to find him.

  
(Gravity Falls lake, now)

  
Danny looked at his reflection, carefully touching where his horn had been. The exposed skin was soft and tender, and it made him feel oddly naked. Not defenseless, no, he had plenty of other ways to fight; but it threw him off a little. He huffed softly and let his arms dangle in the water, watching thin bits of ice form around them. He hoped Dipper liked the gift.

  
Thankfully, he didn't have to wonder long. He heard the tear of a portal opening and sat up, shaking the water off. Wulf was smiling, a good sign. Since they hadn't had a chance to for some time, the two shared a hug and the werewolf sat down beside him.

  
"So did he like it?"

  
Wulf nodded. "Mi kredas li faris. Li ankaŭ demandis, ke mi donu al vi tion."

  
Danny tilted his head, looking at the paper Wulf held. He could just see the picture on it; the red lines catching his eye. He reached out to take it, careful not to poke holes with his claws. As soon as his claws brushed the paper a painful burn spread up his arm. He backed away and let it fall to the floor. Wulf jumped back as well. Both of them stared at the paper, harmlessly drifting to the grass.

  
A quick inspection showed no injuries. Danny rubbed his arm and stepped closer to the picture. He leaned down to look the sign on it and felt a tingle of ice on his spine. With Wulf's help, he brought the image back to the shack. Wulf set it on the kitchen table and bid goodbye to Danny. He waved him off, already focused on the drawing. His eyes traced the straight lines, feeling out the meaning of it. He reached out to touch it again, carefully this time. It didn't burn him, or do much of anything.

  
Touching it did give him a feeling though. It was faint, but he could feel fear, pain, and, most chillingly, a desperate wish for it to end. By any means necessary. The feeling was layered endlessly, as though this mark had been made hundreds of times by hundreds of people; all of them young. The chill grew stronger still, causing a faint mist to form around him. Something else was embedded in the mark. Something dark. He was suddenly struck by a horrible viciousness; a madness driven urge to protect through death and violence.

  
Danny yelped and tossed the paper away, shivering violently. This was not a good mark. He needed to warn Dipper as soon as possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All the names in the chat were randomly chosen from bash.org. and a rough translation of Wulf's dialogue.  
> 1\. I am Wulf. And you're Dipper, correct?  
> 2\. Danny told me to give you this.  
> 3\. I think so. He also asked that I give you this.


	3. Shadow in a Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A disturbing beast makes itself known

There was one way to do it. He could still overshadow others to enter their dreams, but he didn't like to. Ever since he had learned about Bill and the Mindscape he found himself hesitant to do it. Fearing that doing so would awaken some other mental demon. He had only just recovered from Weirdmaggedon; he didn't need another geometric nightmare on his back. Still, it remained his fastest method so, like it or not, he was going to be visiting some dreams.

  
Just not alone. He would need Nocturne's help if he was going to find the right dream. And to avoid the wrong things.

  
He carefully dropped the picture in the garbage, not willing to risk another burn, before opening a portal and heading through. Only then did he realize the flaw in his plan; he had NO IDEA where to find Nocturne. He didn't even know if the ghost had a lair in the zone or just, sort of wandered around. _'Ugh, stupid. I got too freaked out to think it through, just like always.'_

  
Rather than sit around berating himself he decided to see if Frostbite could help him. Maybe the Infinimap would find him. If he had a lair at all. He took a second to orientate himself, catching a whiff of the Far Frozen, and launched into the green abyss of the Zone. He followed the faint, chilled odor to the icy stretch of land that covered the near entirety of the Zone's northern reaches; if any part of the place could be considered North.

  
As he flew close something caught his eye. A small, white object was bouncing along the fragmented ground below. He watched it for several minutes before it slipped out of sight. He dropped down a bit lower to try and spot it again, but it was gone. Perhaps he had just imagined it. He groaned and rubbed his eyes. Maybe he was still stressed from shedding and that weird mark. _'Oh, yeah. Maybe Frostbite would know something about that too.'_

  
The Far Frozen, as always, brought an immediate comfort to him. It wasn't just the ever present ice and snow that calmed him, but the fact that he had sure friends in the residents here. Frostbite would never turn his back on someone who needed help, and his people followed his lead; showing almost unrelenting hospitality and friendliness to guests. Danny personally had only seen them force someone out once. That had been Skulker, so there was no love lost there.

  
He soared over the empty landscape and smiled. Already he could see the outcroppings that hid the homes of his friends. He gave out a gentle pulse of energy, recognizable only to two creatures; him and Frostbite. It had become their method of greeting each other after Weirdmaggedon; a way of identifying themselves if sight wasn't reliable. After all, more than a few shapeshifters were pulled into the Ghost Zone after that nonsense cleared up. Most of the residents had learned to deal with them, but they were still an issue from time to time.

  
"Great One! Welcome back!" Frostbite emerged from a cavern below and waved him in. Danny tucked his wings in and gracefully swooped down; making sure to shrink down a bit for politeness' sake. Frostbite bowed to him and Danny immediately flushed green. "You don't have to do that, you know." He muttered.

  
"I suppose not, but a king is a king. I'd feel dreadfully rude if I didn't acknowledge your title in some way."

  
"You already call me 'Great One' and throw a party every time I'm here. Isn't that enough?"

  
Frostbite actually stopped to think about that one. "I suppose you're right."

  
Danny shrugged. "Besides it's really just a title anyway. The Ghost Zone hasn't needed a king in, like, _ever_."

  
Frostbite welcomed him to the cavern that was, more or less, his home. Neatly furnished with a few basic things; mostly sturdy tables covered with furs for him to lay on (he liked being off the ground when he could). "While that is true. There are many ghosts that would benefit from knowing that someone decent held the title."

  
He hopped up on the closest table and shuffled the fur around, packing it tightly around himself. Frostbite left the room and came back with a tray of tea. "But now is not the time to discuss such things. I assume you have a reason for your visit?"

  
Danny took a small bowl and inhaled deeply, ghostmint, his favorite. He gulped it down without waiting for it to cool; delighting in the way it turned his every breath into a billowing misty cloud, as though his insides were steaming away. "Yeah, I need to find Nocturne. But the only times I see him is when I'm sleeping, and I don't have time to wait."

  
"And just what has caused this urgency?"

  
He set the empty bowl down, idly swirling the dregs with a finger. "Dipper sent me this. . . sigil thing, wanted me to take a look. It burned me at first. Then when I looked it. I won't tell you everything but it was NOT a good mark. I need to get to Dipper ASAP to warn him. And the fastest way is his dreams."

  
Frostbite nodded and left again; leaving Danny with his quickly darkening thoughts. _'What if I can't get to him in time? What if he goes looking for more of these marks and makes the owner mad? That horn can only do so much to scare things off. Whatever created that sigil is not going to be scared off by a horn! Oh, no. What if it tries to kill Dipper!?'_

  
"Great One. Danny!"

  
He twitched hard, nearly tossing the paw off him. "Calm yourself. Panicking will not help you get to your friend. Nocturne does indeed have a lair here. So go. Time is clearly of the essence."

  
The Infinimap was pressed into his hands. He spoke his destination and hung on tight as the map whisked him away.

  
~*~

  
Nocturne was settling in to rest. Being a spirit of dreams he had no real need for sleep, getting all his energy from the dreams of the living, but it felt nice to lay back once in a while. Just as he was closing his eyes, though, he felt something enter his domain. "Of course." He sighed.

  
But who knew to look for him here? He had purposely made his lair in the darkest depths of the Ghost Zone specifically to avoid things like this. He grumped and mumbled all the way to where the intruder stood. When he saw who it was he didn't know how to react. Of course he'd known the ghost child had been made king, but he hadn't known about his little makeover. "Interesting new look, child. Now what brings you here?"

  
By this point he wasn't surprised by Nocturne's reaction; the ghost had probably peeked in on him at least once. Most of the ghosts that weren't at his coronation had. So he just let the map go home and trotted up to him, giving him a bow. "I have to send a warning to someone and the fastest way to get there is through dreams. But the Mindscape makes me nervous and I'd rather not go through there alone. So I ask; will you guide me?"

  
Nocturne smirked. "So you can be polite when the situation calls for it." His grin grew when Danny puffed his cheeks out, looking almost adorable. He bowed at the waist. "But yes, I'll guide you to the mind you need. Please come with me."

  
Danny followed the dream ghost down to a set of stairs, formed from the blackish purple void of his lair. There were swirls of stars and light along the walls that he found his eyes drawn to, regardless of how much he tried to pay attention to Nocturne. But eventually he came to a halt as the walls began showing unknown planets and far away galaxies.

  
Nocturne stopped when he noticed the other wasn't following him. In fact, the stairwell was empty. He turned back with a sigh and found Danny entranced by visions of stars. Knowing very well that he would stay there until the end of days, Nocturne grabbed him by his tail and forcibly pulled him down the last flight of stairs. Danny came to when his chin smacked the very solid floor. He got up with a huff and yanked his tail free, fixing Nocturne with a suspicious glare. "What was that? Why couldn't I look away?"

  
"I won't mince words. That was a trap, plain and simple. Designed to entrance those with powerful dreams. For all you have accomplished; you have not fulfilled your dreams." He waved his hand at the room they had entered. The far wall (for all that it could be called such, nothing in the place had any real definition) dominated by single portrait of a dirt road passing through a forest. "This is the heart of my lair. As such I want it to be safe. The power to travel dreams is rare and much coveted. There are many, human and spirit alike, who would use such a power for ill. I apologize for not having warned you, but I sincerely believed you had accomplished your wish to be among the stars."

  
Danny's face fell, ears drooping. "I lost the chance at that dream long before I left Amity Park. I guess I just forgot it."

  
A large hand slipped under his chin, raising his eyes to meet Nocturne's. The ghost seemed almost, sad. "Such a wonderful dream you have. One that may be realized still. After all you are not human. You don't need _their_ methods of going to the stars. Nor their ideas of intelligence."

  
Ears pricked up as Danny thought about it. Nocturne was right! He was still thinking like a human about so many things. That settled it; next time he had a chance he was going. He would see the stars; maybe even a planet or two! He quivered with excitement at the thought. Nocturne grinned. "Much better. Now to whose dream do you wish to go?"

  
"Dipper Pines." Nocturne nodded and stepped into the painting, not even the barest ripple showing his passage. Danny followed a little more cautiously. His experiences with Bill Cipher had lead him to believe the Mindscape was just greyscale; so he was surprised to see the world around him full of color. It was like he was right back in Gravity Falls. All the sights and sounds were in place; although it was literally half night, half day with both sun and moon present in the sky. He followed Nocturne closely, still taking it in.

  
Nocturne, for his part, just smiled. "Your friend has a vivid imagination. Most people can't quite get the details right."

  
Danny didn't react to the comment. Instead he galloped past him to the lake shore, certain he would find Dipper there. Sure enough he spotted the trapper hat Wendy had given him at the end of the summer as soon as he cleared the trees. He was watching the odd, nearly transparent creatures, floating above the water and drawing in a sketchbook; several more were stacked beside him. Danny snorted a laugh. "Even in his sleep he can't stop studying."

  
He trotted over and sat beside him, choosing to wait until he was noticed. It didn't take long. Dipper smiled at him and put down the book. It looked like he knew this wasn't part of his dream as he looked at him expectantly. He could see his horn around Dipper's neck. "So you liked it? That's good. I didn't come here to chat, though."

  
Dipper frowned, his hand going to the horn. "That mark you sent me. It's bad news. Whatever created it is not good. Even if the purpose it was made for is. I need to know where you saw that."

  
The frown deepened. "It was online. On the forum I set up."

  
That wasn't too bad then. Still. "If you see that mark anywhere in town or anywhere close to town you tell me. It might not try and hurt you but I won't take that chance."

  
The hand gripping the horn let go. At the motion the lake vanished and it became fully night. Whispering started up around them. Dipper stood quickly, panic rising in his eyes. It was clear to Danny that the change had not been his choice. He got up as well and looked around. Something was moving in the trees, something lanky and low to the ground. Each movement made Danny's stomach churn; the thing looked like it was walking with broken limbs. As it moved closer the whispering grew louder, and Danny could see it's eyes, like a pair of headlights.

  
He backed up, pushing Dipper with him. Suddenly Nocturne burst from the trees, surrounding them both in globe of stars made by his body. He looked as worried as Danny felt.

  
"This dream is no longer safe!" He shouted. "Quickly, wake the boy! We must return, now!"

  
He didn't need to be told twice. He shoved Dipper fully into Nocturne, not stopping until he had been completely swallowed. Then he took to his heels, nearly flying after the dream ghost. Without Dipper the dream began to fade, but the whispering only grew louder and angrier. Danny chanced a look back and was frozen by the glowing eyes of the creature. Long, too long, metal claws reached for him. He couldn't move, the whispering became deafening. As the claws brushed against him someone yanked him away. He watched the last of the dream vanish, along with the creature.

  
Then he was prone on the ground, staring at the purplish void of Nocturne's "ceiling". He pushed himself up and looked at the portrait; it had gone dark, except for two glowing eyes. He shivered and rolled to his feet. He noticed he was panting, even though he didn't need to breathe. He was just that shaken. Nocturne saw the state he was in and picked him up, carrying him like a cat to his inner den. A cushion formed itself from the nothing and he laid the phantasm on it, watching with worried eyes as he curled into a tight ball; every limb tucked in tight.

  
He looked at him like a lost kitten. "W-what was that th-thing?"

  
Nocturne, for once, was at a loss. "I. . . don't know. I've never seen or heard of such a creature before. No nightmare would present itself in such a way." He looked down at the phantasm, and felt a profound urge to comfort him. Unsure of just how to do so, he settled beside him and slowly pet his head and neck. Danny began to purr, and the tremors slowed. A few minutes of this and he managed to calm down enough to ask one more question.

  
"So what do we do? Or I do? That thing was in Dipper's dream." Another thought occurred. "Can it get to other dreams?"

  
Nocturne continued petting him; finding the action just as soothing for himself. "No. What little I gathered shows that is not how it functions. But I think you should make your way to him as soon as you can."

  
"Right." Danny managed to stand and shook himself, one final reassurance. "Will you be okay?"

  
"No need to concern yourself with me. I can handle myself. Now go."

  
Danny nodded and flew back outside. Not even glancing at the walls' trap; he had bigger things to focus on.

  
_'Don't worry Dipper, I'm coming. Just stay safe until then."_


	4. The thing in the closet

"Aaagh!"

  
Dipper nearly threw himself out of bed he sat up so fast. What was that? He'd been at the lake, then Danny had showed up and then, then he didn't remember. Something about the mark being bad. All he could remember was the whispering; even now it was loud in his ears.

  
And in his room.

  
His eyes locked on to a twisted shape slipping by his closet door. Too scared to check and too worried to go back to sleep, Dipper grabbed a book off his bedstand and flicked the light on. Looks like he was going to be reading the rest of the night, again. The whispering was still there, but quieter; he could ignore it.

  
When morning finally came Dipper groaned, massaging his temples to try and fend off the all nighter headache that was coming. At least the whispering had stopped. He wasn't going to try and look into that just yet. He took care of his usual morning business and went down to the kitchen. Mabel was already at the table; she had the coffee maker going and had already put out his mug. He could smell waffles being cooked and sat down with a sigh, resting his head on the table.

  
Mabel looked him over. "What's up, bro? You look awful. You didn't spend all night awake again, did you?"

  
Dipper groaned again. "Not by choice. I had a weird dream that woke me up. And when I did I could still hear the noise from the dream in my room." He was embarrassed but he had to admit it. "I was too scared to go back to sleep so I just stayed up the rest of the night."

  
"Think we should call the Grunkles?" She asked. Dipper shook his head.

  
"No. Besides, last time Ford called they were going to be leaving soon. He said something about going to West Virginia. Probably just another Mothman but he still wants to check."

  
"Okay." Her voice had a concerned lilt to it as she asked her next question. "So, does that mean we're gonna suit up and check it out?"

  
'Suit up' was their slang for grabbing all their occult equipment and throwing things at the wall until something stuck. Most of the time they managed to find something before whatever they were dealing with got mad. He had a feeling that might be bad idea this time, though. "Better not. I've never heard of anything like that before. Let's just check around the house this time. Just in case it hung around."

  
After they ate breakfast and cleaned up (Mabel left the coffee on for their parents) the two of them grabbed a few minor charms and set about searching the house. Much to Dipper's dislike, Mabel wanted to start in his room.

  
It was still quiet when they entered, to his relief, but Mabel spotted something off right away. She had opened the closest and was looking very hard at something. He peeked over her shoulder.

  
"Was this little door always here?" She asked.

  
He shrugged. He never really looked down in the closest. Why would he? All his stuff was hung up; no need for the floor. Still, something did feel off about the door. He crouched down and put an ear to it, hoping and dreading hearing some sort of sound. Nothing. Not even a hiss.

  
He tried to open it, but his fingers couldn't get any grip. Mabel moved him aside and jammed a pry-bar against it. After a couple of tries the bar snapped. There wasn't even a dent in the wall. Both of them frowned and shared a glare. Dipper sighed. "This is not a normal door, and whatever made it clearly doesn't want it opened. Let's just leave some stuff around and try to keep it in there."

  
Mabel agreed and Dipper pulled their things out from under his bed. The two of them put a few charms below the door and, as an extra precaution, smudged sage on it. Afterwards they went outside, just in case. Unfortunately, whatever had been in Dipper's room hadn't left the house; there were no prints or anything. The whole thing left him very uneasy. Especially since the thing strongly resembled what he'd seen through the horn. He was starting to wish he hadn't looked at all. He wasn't going to blame Danny though. After all, he had warned him about looking; he just chose not to listen.

  
That night Dipper stayed awake again, eyes locked on his closet. Even though he tried to sleep, assuring himself the charms would keep that small door shut, it simply wouldn't come. With a frustrated sigh, he looked at the clock for the third time that night; the numbers shining a soft blue. _'Only one am? I feels like it's been longer'_

  
As the the thought passed it started. The whispering. He heard a low rustling in his closest and saw the door inch open. The inner door was open. From it came the shadowy thing from his dream. It lurched brokenly from the closet, and hauled itself to the end of his bed. Slowly, achingly slowly, those glowing eyes peered over at him. It continued to watch him, whispering all the while. To his shock, he thought he could discern words.

  
**_"Child of strange star, world sees you. Still have time. Prepare."_ **

  
It climbed on his bed as the whispering grew more urgent. It reached out for him, razor claws gleaming in the autumn moonlight. With a triumphant cry something swooped over his head and tackled the thing. He saw limbs flailing and felt the room go cold. The two beasts fought for a time until the invader pulled itself free and retreated to the closet. The other followed, only to run into the now closed crawlspace door with a hollow smack. It was still crouched, growling low and tail lashing, when Dipper regained enough mentality to recognize his rescuer.

  
"Danny?"

  
The endigo stopped and turned to him with a grin. "The one and only. Are you okay?"

  
"Yeah." They both looked at the closet. "Think it'll be back?"

  
Danny sighed. "I don't know. But I'll be here when it does."

  
With Danny there it was much easier for Dipper to sleep. He was a little surprised that no one else woke up, though.

  
He woke the next morning to the faint weight of Danny on his bed, still watching the closet. It was obvious that he was tired, his tail kept falling still. "Danny? I'm awake now so maybe you should sleep."

  
He looked at him, confused. Before smiling and shaking his head. "Danny, seriously, you look awful. Stay here and rest. I'm going to talk to Mabel and we'll try to charm the door again."

  
As he stepped out of his room he heard the soft tick of claws, he turned back and saw Danny just getting off the bed. He sighed and pushed the endigo back on his bed. "I'll be fine. I don't think that thing will come out during the day. And if it does you'll be in here to stop it."

  
That seemed to be the right thing to say. Danny gave a tired sigh and climbed back on the bed, walking in circles a few times before flopping down, one eye on the door as he fell asleep.

  
Downstairs Dipper and Mabel decided to regroup and try again. With Danny around they didn't need to worry about being attacked, if that was what the creature wanted to do. So they focused on gathering information. Mabel tried to phone the Mystery Shack but was told that Stan and Ford had already left. It didn't matter anyway; Dipper had never seen anything like that in any of the journals. So they split up; Mabel called Pacifica to see if any of the Gravity Falls covens had heard of this thing, while Dipper turned to the internet and his forum to try and find information.

>   
> Discussion: Creature with long claws in house Posted by: Admin-LordDippingsauce  
> So this creature is in my house. I can't see it as it only comes out at night. It seems to get in through a crawlspace that wasn't in my closet before. It has glowing eyes and long claws. My partner was able to chase it away. I wasn't attacked but it did talk to me. Looking for information on getting rid of it. 

  
While he waited for a response he used his description to search the web. All that came up was stories people had written. He clicked away from the fourth link to a scary story archive when the computer pinged. He opened his forum again and found a single message in his inbox.

>   
> RE: Discussion  
> All tales are true. It is The Rake. A beast with a man's mind. Heed the whispers. Others are coming. Find allies below the world you know.

  
The name was one he didn't recognize. On clicking to see the messenger's profile he was brought to a dead account. He looked through it and found the account had been made and deactivated within minutes. Just long enough to see his post and send an answer.

  
"Below the world I know? What does that mean?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Rake is nightmare fuel incarnate for me. Seriously I used to have nightmares of eyes peeking over the end of my bed.


	5. A visit and peaked interests

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A glimpse into the foundation; courtesy of Jeff.

The site was in an uproar. Something had broken in and let loose several Safe class SCPs. Now the annoyances were running around causing havoc. Dr. Kondraki slammed the door behind him, chest heaving and butterflies swarming angrily. Outside something bounced off the door with a wet squelch then rolled away. The faint smell of peanut better meant that was probably 999. He heard a soft laugh from above him and looked up to see one of the ceiling tiles had been moved and a pair of glowing, pinkish red eyes staring at him from the hole. He sighed.

  
"Was all this really necessary?"

  
"I went through that weird part of the Rift again. The one will all the floating rocks and green shit in the sky."

  
"Is that why you decided to cause a containment breach?"

  
"That part gives me a fuckin' headache. I needed somethin'. . . normal. To calm me down."

  
"That doesn't explain why," He stopped and sighed. "Abnormality is your normal, of course." He looked back up. "Get down from there would you? And put the tile back."

  
The eyes closed as the one in the ceiling laughed again before crawling out. They clung like a gecko as they moved the tile back in place, then dropped down. Grunting a little as something offset their balance. Dr. Kondraki stared down at the, rather infamous, 4140. He briefly glanced over the young man, assessing his condition. He took in the pale skin and hair (both slightly blackened with dirt), and, on lifting his hoodie, noted some bruising on his hips. Minor injuries, all told. Then he looked down and saw the real problem.

  
The young man's left leg had been replaced by a tapering black spike, just a little thicker than his right. It squirmed a bit as he stared. It was longer than his other leg, causing him to stumble as he couldn't quite balance himself. "So that's why you came back."

  
"Well yeah. You ain't gonna let me run around without a tracker. Kinda violates the spirit of the bargain. Donchathink?"

  
"Indeed. And the bruises?" Kondraki opened the door slightly and peeked out. Things were clear so it looked like the chaos had either been contained or moved to another part of the facility. With that out of the way he took 4140 down to the medical wing.

  
"Got called out. Had to squeeze through a pretty tight window to get in. And considerin' I'm built like Chun Li that's no mean feat. Gah! Fuck that hurts!"

  
Kondraki stopped pulling on the spiked limb, instead putting on a pair of latex gloves and carefully prying apart the tendrils. He saw a majority of them had fused to the limb; it looked like they were going to be used to replace it. He threw away the gloves. "So how did it happen?"

  
"Ran into an old friend who wasn't happy to see me. We got in a fight and he tore my damn leg off. Now I have to wait for this," He slapped the squirming tendrils. "To reform before I can do anythin' else."

  
Kondraki adjusted his glasses, a smirk forming. "So you didn't come back to visit? How sad."

  
4140 laughed. "Not on your life, butterfly brains. As soon as I get a new tracker I'm out of here. Got kids to save after all."

  
"Fine, fine. A man can hope."

  
With Kondraki escorting him, as required by the agreement, 4140 returned to the room that served as his home in the facility. Kondraki waited for him to go in then locked the door. He sighed and limped to the bed tucked in the far corner; he pulled the sheets up curled underneath them. "Home sweet home. For now."

  
He was lying there, awake, for about an hour when the door slid open again, allowing Dr. Kondraki back in. He sat up and watched him. The doctor waved. "Sorry if I woke you up, Jeffy."

  
"I wasn't asleep. Watcha got there. Kon-kon?"

  
Kondraki walked to the table used for his interviews and started setting up a laptop. "I finally twisted everyone's arms enough to let you have this, so you've got a way to keep yourself occupied after lights out. You've got full internet access on the condition you don't talk about the foundation."

  
Jeff zipped his lips shut. After he finished setting up and left Jeff jumped on the table and lay full length on it. The computer had been turned on and Kondraki had made sure to download some browsers. Jeff clicked around and sarcastically said. "Aww, he got Firefox. He really does love me."

  
He quickly started looking around for any weird stuff. As usual, most of it was hoaxes or trolling, but then he came across a site he hadn't seen before. It looked like a normal video sharing site; albeit one that specialized in the supernatural. It even had a forum. While he was clicking through the different categories he spotted a message that got his attention. The person who ran the site had a run in they wanted explained. He read the post and immediately felt a chill. "That thing hasn't been here in decades. What the hell? This kid doesn't know what he's dealing with, I have to warn him."

  
He threw together an account real quick and fired off the warning message; deleting his account soon after. He didn't want to risk someone getting curious and tracing him; it had happened before and he was going to do everything he could to keep it from happening again. After making sure the message was received, with a friend's help, he went back in the forum to see what else this little community had picked up on. Like before, it was mostly just messing around, there was the occasional real sighting or other such encounter story (a bunch involving a park officer were neat). He also saw a thread talking about someone's picture of one of his sigils.

  
While this was all very interesting, he had other things to worry about. The Rake was out and about, at least one of them was. Who knew if others were loose as well. If that thing was around it wouldn't be long before others started to show up too. It may not have been his job as a Fear but damned if he didn't like keeping the competition down. He started sifting through the site to try and find anything on the creator, but was coming up empty handed. He had found and watched all the 'Mysteries of Gravity Falls' videos, but he just couldn't bring himself to believe they were related.

  
Accepting that would mean this kid was putting himself, and possibly others, at serious risk with his nosiness. That was something he wouldn't let stand. Still, there was a chance it was a one off thing. That a Rake had just slipped through the cracks and decided to mess with someone. The chance was slim, but he was going to cling to it like a drowning man. Jeff made sure to bookmark the site and checked it daily during his stay.

  
Near the end of the week the tendrils on his leg had hardened and begun to crack, showing the progress of his leg's regeneration. By the next week his leg had healed entirely. So he packed up, leaving the laptop just in case, and said his goodbyes. After one last check-up from most of the onsite personnel to make sure he wasn't taking anything he wasn't allowed to he left, walking through the door of Dr. Kondraki's office and vanishing.

  
His thoughts were unhappy ones; the rise in activity on the site did not say anything good. The hope that the Rake encounter had been a one off had been thoroughly dashed. Now he needed to find that kid, but he first he needed to know what was going on. The only way he could think to do that was just to keep his ear to the ground.

  
As he walked out through a bend in the trees into a small park he felt a tug at the base of his neck; his sigil was being drawn. Before he turned around to go back to the Rift he realized the source was quite close. "Huh, well let's do this shit instead then."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jeff's physique is like a mix of aestheticallysadalien's King Dice and Chun Li, thiccer than a snicker but could crush your head.


	6. Dreams in the Rift

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of the places in this are from/inspired by OH GOD THE RAPTURE IS BURNING (yes the caps are part of the title)

_'Well this is new.'_

  
Danny stood on a dirt road running through an empty town. When he looked behind him he could see a beautiful garden archway with the whirling purples of Nocturne's lair beyond. He knew instinctively that it would just move away from him, so he ignored it and pressed on into the town.

  
To his surprise he barely took two steps before he was on the other end and outside of town. The area around him was equally empty, and the only sound was a faint bass boom in the distance. Still the possibility of finding another person pushed Danny towards the sound.

  
It began to echo as he approached, as though it came from multiple sources. Following it came the musky scent of large animals. Abruptly the road became a field of white grass. Across this field lumbered gigantic hoofed beasts with necks that stretched up to the white sky above.

  
Just as Danny felt like his eyes would start bleeding from all the white he spotted a spray of colors above. Suspended in the air was a bridge built from an aurora; a door was placed at either end. He flicked his wings and flew to the bridge. Or tried to. Confused, he tried again and fell on his rump. Only then did he take a look at himself. He looked. . . normal. He was human again!

  
"What? Why am I? This dream is getting weird." He sighed and started thinking about how to get to the bridge. With a ground shaking thump the leg of one of the creatures came down beside him, knocking him down for a third time. He knew how he'd get up there now. Jumping on the leg before it left the ground, he started to climb.

  
He climbed for what felt like hours before he reached the creature's broad back. He lay on it and caught his breath. The thumping music was louder here for some reason. It seemed to be coming from above him. Once he recovered enough he started to climb the neck, the music getting louder all the while.

  
"Okay, it's official. Someone drugged me." He had reached the top of the creature's neck, only to find it had no head. In its place was a large boombox playing dubstep. He stood on top of it and saw the other creatures had the same head. The music was starting to give him a headache so he looked at the boombox and found the volume, turning it down to a more tolerable level. As soon as he did that the rest of the beasts stopped moving and turned towards their silent companion. Danny gulped. "That probably wasn't the best idea."

  
The beasts started gathering around him, bumping him with their boxy heads. As they did, they started to pile on the first one, slowly but surely raising a tower. Danny started climbing again, jumping whenever one stumbled and fell. Eventually he managed to conquer the bizarre game of jenga and reach the bridge. He collapsed, gasping for air.

  
When he got his energy back he sat up. There were two doors to choose from, but he had no idea what this dream wanted from him. If he had his powers he would have just duplicated himself and checked both, but that wasn't an option so he had to pick one and go with it. "Well, I'm right handed so let's go with the right door."

  
Thankfully dream logic didn't seem to affect magical rainbow bridges, so he reached the door quite swiftly. There was nothing special about it; a bit rustic looking but that was it. The handle was a little stiff as well, but he managed to work it open. Beyond the door was a dark school hallway, like something out of cliched horror game, with flickering lights and everything. Frankly, he was a little disappointed after his romp through dubstep-giraffe land.

  
Still, it was something new. "Well onward we go."

  
He was halfway down the hall when the lights blinked out entirely. The locker doors slammed rapidly and he heard the rushed breathing of something run past him. Again, pretty standard for a horror setting. When the lights came back on something was sitting at the other end of the hall. He growled. "You! What do you want with Dipper!"

  
It was the same creature from Dipper's dream, shadowy as always. He made a grab for it and it dodged him handily, bones creaking as it bashed down the door to the next place. Danny gave chase. "Alright dream, where to next?"

  
Next was apparently fever dream land. Danny felt like he had ran straight into a disco; lights and colors abounded. After the darkness of the hall it was nearly blinding. Worse still, he couldn't find a door. He gave his eyes some time to adjust and quickly spotted the thing again. "Look I just want some answers so come here!"

  
It clearly wasn't in the mood to listen and ran again, leaving terrified whispers in its wake. It ran into absolute nothing and Danny followed without thinking. It was only when he reached the next area did he realize his mistake. The creature was gone, and so was basically everything else. All he could hear was a rapid clicking, like a lot of legs scuttling along. He felt something climb up his back and down his front, tiny pointed legs pricking along his shirt.

  
He went stone still. Only one creature he knew of felt like that on him. Centipedes. As that one word passed through his brain he shut down. They were all over the place. _'What if the room IS centipedes? Oh god, I can't do this.'_ He sank to the ground and curled into the fetal position, shaking.

  
Then a new sound broke through his panic, a soft tread, nearly buried in the clicking and tapping. The footsteps stopped next to him and he heard a grumpy voice say, "What the fuck is a kid doin' this far down? C'mon kid let's get your ass outta here."

  
He felt a hand go under his arm and haul him up, he remained frozen. The voice huffed. "So you're scared of these little shits? Alright then I'll handle it."

  
The person hefted him over their shoulder and carried him off. He didn't care where they took him as long as it was out of this horrible place.

  
By the time he was calm enough to take in his location his rescuer had dumped him in front of a door. He felt a clawed foot kick him through and the gruff voice toss one last comment at him. "Next time just stay still for Christ's sake. You'll get spat out sooner. Now fuck off."

  
Then all he heard was a loud creak.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just because Jeff's helping doesn't mean he won't be a dick about it. That's why he's my trash child.


	7. A trip to Amity Park

Danny was startled awake by the sound of creaking doors. The house was quiet as Dipper and Mabel were at school. He looked at the clock, seeing it was nowhere near time for them to be home. Which left one option.

  
A second creak sounded and his head snapped towards the closet. With Pacifica's guidance, the twins had placed a series of sigils on the edge of the door. Apparently, they were supposed to keep the thing inside the closet. Since it had created the crawlspace it couldn't be affected; therefor all that could be done was protect the area outside the closet. Pacifica hadn't known what the creature could be either, and promised to talk to the covens for answers; she said she would call back afterwards. So far they were all still waiting for that to happen.

  
The door began bouncing violently as their unwanted guest struggled to get it open. The sigils sparked, and Danny slowly crept off the the bed; taking up an ambush position on the opposite side. He peeked around as one of the marks burned off. The door bounced even harder, then went still.

  
Then the creature hissed, like rusty metal dragging on a road, and simply bashed the door down; claws hacking it away. Danny sighed. "Their parents are not going to like that."

  
He crawled under the bed; waiting for the creature's breathing to come near. Once it was close enough he lunged at it, plowing into it and going intangible to send them both careening through the wall. He landed on it with a muffled crack, likely a rib. Hidden by the lovingly maintained hedge fence, Danny didn't have to worry about an unwanted audience. The thing wedged its foot on his chest and kicked him away. Danny flipped and landed without a problem.

  
The two stared, each sizing the other up. Making sure it was watching, Danny slowly grew to full size; more than enjoying the way its eyes went wide. Now as big as he could get, he took a single step forward and snorted, letting frost blow over its face. The creature swallowed audibly and retreated to the bushes, where it watched.

  
Danny snorted again, turned his back and, with his tail held high, kicked up the dirt at it. Then he took a flying leap back inside the house. But as the creature peeked out of its hiding place he swiftly returned to the window, glaring daggers until it backed away again.

  
He stayed there; not even moving when the front door opened and the twins called his name.

  
Downstairs, Dipper and Mabel looked at each other. "I really hope he didn't sleep all day again. What if he gets sick?"

  
Mabel patted his shoulder, tossing her backpack by the door. "I don't think he'll get sick from too much sleep, bro-bro. But I do think we should find him something to do."

  
Dipper nodded and called for the endigo again; getting just a bit nervous when he still didn't respond. The two went to his room and found the closet door broken down. Dipper nearly went into full panic mode until he saw Danny sitting, stone still, in front of his window. He breathed a sigh of relief. Then he saw how intensely he was watching the yard. "Danny?"

  
He had learned from experience that touching him in this state would be bad; so he carefully approached the bed. He grabbed a pillow he kept for this kind of thing and tossed it at him. The pillow landed and Danny spun around and pinned it with a growl; pupils blown wide. His head jerked up and his pupils shrank back as he registered who was standing there.

  
"Oh, you're home."

  
He backed away from the pillow. Dipper picked it up and dusted it off. "Yeah, we've been home for a little bit. What happened in here?"

  
"That thing came back. I chased it outside and I've been watching it."

  
Dipper gulped. "Is it still there?"

  
He shook his head. "No, it jumped the fence a couple minutes ago. But I've been keeping an eye on things just it case. It smashed the door down."

  
Mabel looked in the closet. "Well at least that other door is gone."

  
"What?" Both boys looked at her in surprise. They peeked around her and, sure enough, the crawlspace door had vanished without a trace. Dipper sat down, a little stunned. "Well, would you look at that? So does this mean it won't be back or-?"

  
"I don't know." Then Dipper remembered the email. "I did get this weird message. I asked if anyone on the forum knew what it was or saw anything like it."

  
He went to the computer and booted it up; quickly pulling up his site and inbox. He opened the odd IM and showed them. "The account was made just long enough for whoever made it to send the message. They deleted it after."

  
Danny leaned over his shoulder to read it. "The Rake? Is this guy for real? That old creepypasta?"

  
Dipper turned to look at him. "Creepy what? You've heard of this before?"

  
He nodded. "Yeah, Sam is big time into this stuff. It's just the name for horror stories posted on the internet. The Rake is one of the originals; and I mean original. She showed me that one back in junior high."

  
This was an unnerving development. Dipper felt a chill that had nothing to do with Danny. "It said "all tales are true", does that mean there are other creatures like that thing?"

  
Mabel shivered. "More? Just one was bad enough! And I thought Gravity Falls was full of creepy stuff. And what does that world below stuff mean? Does Mr. Mysterious-letter-sender want us to summon a demon or something?"

  
No one had an answer for that. Dipper didn't want to admit that he was seriously considering that as an option. Danny shifted, tucking his tail under him; his ears were pressed down. "Maybe I should talk to Sam. Maybe she might know. In the mean time try and find your mystery informant. Ask Technus for help."

  
He took one last glace into the backyard and left, wings buzzing nervously as he flew. He kept an eye on the passing scenery just in case he spotted something else out of place. So focused on finding that monkey thing was he, that he completely missed a patch of white come out of a garden shed, watch him for a second, then run to the Pines' yard and grab the Rake that was still hiding there.

  
~*~

  
Danny skimmed the rooftops of Amity Park, heading towards the high end community of Amity Heights, where Vlad now lived. After returning to Wisconsin, the three had sat down and, along with general catching up, discussed how to make the town safer for ghosts and humans alike. Jazz had mentioned the upcoming mayoral election and they had jumped on it.

  
Starting with Vlad moving to town (which the Fentons, no surprise, were thrilled by), he began making the moves needed to win over the residents. When the election came he won by a landslide. Afterwards he began implementing the changes the three of them had discussed. Starting with an all out attack on the reputations of Jack and Maddie Fenton.

  
Both Jazz and Danny went public with everything that had happened to them in their lives. Everyone had been quite surprised by his appearance, but they could also feel how little a threat he was to them. True to form the ghost hunters disagreed. Jack fired on him as soon as they spotted him, shouting that he would finish what he started; Maddie denounced her daughter as mad for associating with such a clearly dangerous creature.

  
That was the final straw for many of them. For years the town had dealt with their crackpot theories and unwarranted attacks on innocents under the claim they were possessed or some other nonsense. But seeing them do such a thing in broad daylight? They were quickly taken into custody and, at the time of his arrival, were being held for mental evaluation.

  
Danny put all this out of his head for the time being, trying to focus on his reason for being here. That didn't stop him from perching across from his old home for a moment. Fenton Works had been converted into an actual research lab; employing human and ghost alike. Jazz was happily putting her psychology studies to work, helping the two sides understand each others' mentalities and ideals to create a better environment for both. With her and his friends working together, human understanding of the ghost world had sky-rocketed.

  
He felt a flush of pride at the memory, taking a second to gather himself before continuing on to Vlad's, where his sister and friends now resided, and the home of Amity Defense Squad; comprised of the former Phantom Fan Club. Every member was trained in the use of ghost tech and employed to help protect Amity Park from those few ghosts who didn't respect Danny's title. The manor itself was quiet when he arrived, landing softly in the driveway while he double checked his surroundings. "Looks like everyone's gone home for the day."

  
He phased through the door and went straight to Vlad's room; the halfa slept lightly and would likely be expecting him from the moment he landed. Sure enough, he caught the faint tread of the older man coming down the hall. Danny swiftly made his way to the sitting room to wait for him. When he arrived it was clear he had not been asleep, nor had he slept for some time. The shadows under his eyes were heavier than the Gobblewonker after Thanksgiving.

  
He shuffled on his rump a little, waiting for Vlad to settle in. "Have things been bad?"

  
Vlad startled a bit, another sign of his lack of sleep. "Not particularly. A few upstarts thinking they were in the clear, but nothing major."

  
"So why the eye luggage?" Curiosity set aside, Danny was in full mom mode. Vlad merely chuckled and acquiesced to the mothering.

  
"A project of ours has hit a rough patch. We've been trying to track natural portals in and around town but we can't seem to get the triggers down."

  
A head tilt and a curious whine. "Why bother with that? Most naturals don't stay open for very long." He paused. "Right?"

  
Vlad sighed, rubbing his sore eyes. "Normally, yes. But after years of ectoplasmic energy flooding the town through your family's stable portal has given them some extra staying power. The portal has been permanently shut down but the levels of ectoplasm here are still far too high. Currently we've been trying to lower the levels, but we can't seem to find anything that makes it work. I'm trying to come up with a solution, thus my lack of sleep."

  
Danny climbed on the couch beside him, laying his tail across the man's lap. "Hmm, maybe I can think of something. With some time. I doubt at my hungriest I could make a dent in all the ectoplasm in this town."

  
Vlad stroked his tail, silently marveling at just how soft the scales were. "Don't trouble yourself too much, my boy. Anyway, what brings you here?"

  
"Some sort of creature's been after Dipper. Neither of us have seen or heard of anything like it. But, someone contacted him and claimed it was a monster from some internet story. I was going to ask Sam if she could help."

  
Both went silent, only the sound of Danny's low purrs from the tail petting interrupted it. Finally, Vlad spoke up. "Sam isn't in town at the moment. She went to head an exploration in Utah's Goblin Valley. Apparently people have been reporting more activity there."

  
Danny drooped a little bit. Vlad scratched under one ear, perking him up again as he continued. "We can contact her, though perhaps it would be best to wait until morning."

  
He nodded and hopped down, then turned and lifted Vlad in his mouth; carrying him to his room. Again Vlad accepted this, changing clothes and getting in bed. When he was settled Danny climbed on the bed too and purred, slowly draining the stress from Vlad's aura. He continued to do so throughout the night; helping Vlad get a good night's rest for once. 


	8. Down to the Goblin Lands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny heads down to UT for answers and meets some rather strange critters

In the morning Danny waited for Jazz and Vlad to wake up, greeting his sister and joining them for breakfast. Jazz hugged her brother goodbye and headed down to Fenton Works; some new arrivals to the Zone needed help adjusting to things in town. Vlad brought Danny down to his lab; most of the equipment had been converted to other purposes. Danny noted with some nostalgia that Vlad's portal was shut down as well.

  
Although he had said it wasn't his problem, Vlad had decided Danny's help may ultimately provide a breakthrough. So he was going to show him. He was holding the current prototype for safety purposes.

  
It wasn't the most impressive thing. Apparently it was a similar concept to a humidifier; by pumping purifying elements into the air in small quantities it would, theoretically, lower ectoplasm levels to less devastating levels. However, it just wasn't working, no matter how they configured it.

  
Danny sniffed at it and nudged it around a bit. Then he wrinkled his nose and slapped it to the floor. Rather than being upset Vlad simply watched it slide with a thoughtful look. "I take this is a poor idea then?"

  
He nodded, then went back to sniffing around the lab. What he was looking for Vlad wasn't sure; perhaps he was simply looking to get an idea from the smells. Vlad left him to it; cleaning up the prototype and setting it aside. He stood at the counter top, just watching him sweep the floor for scents. Danny came to a sudden stop when he bumped into the closed portal. He looked at it for second when it hit him.

  
"Hello! I'm stupid!." He slapped the side of his head, laughing incredulously.

  
"Have you thought of something, Daniel?"

  
Danny tossed a thumb towards the portal. "Larvae!"

  
Vlad raised a brow. "Pardon? Aren't those a bit dangerous?

  
"Well yeah, in a food-rich environment like Amity Park they could be a real hazard. But I don't mean releasing actual larva. I mean make an artificial one. Just a little ectobiological engineering." Danny grinned, proud of himself until his brain processed the last sentence and he grimaced. "Oh Hecate, my inner Homestuck came out."

  
Vlad, not understanding the reference, merely ignored it. The idea was a brilliant one, after all. With the rise of the supernatural across the world, many were finding ways of incorporating it into their everyday lives. Biological sciences had come even further; thanks to the rather forceful widening of the scientific worldview. It wouldn't be too much of a stretch to combine the two. He quickly drew up plans for a prototype, but they would need a sample to base the device off of. "Would it be possible for you to acquire a larva for testing?"

  
"Yeah. Just make sure you keep it fed and locked up. Those things multiply faster than gnomes in squirrel season; don't ask why those are related." He shuddered.

  
"Right." Vlad finished drawing the basic idea. "Shall we call Samantha now?"

  
"Oh right, yeah."

  
Vlad pressed a button on the counter, bringing down the screen. He dialed the number and they waited for the connection. Eventually she did pick up. Sam looked, for lack of better words, rough. And panicked. She spoke quickly. "Things are bad down here. We opened a cave and, well, let's just say we found how this place got it's name. I'll try and call back later. Woah!"

  
Something leapt at her and knocked the phone away, breaking it and ending the call. Danny puffed up, wings vibrating and ears perked. Vlad stepped back, recognizing the signs of a protective Danny, and with good timing too. Seconds later Danny swept out of the lab and manor in a rush of cold wind.

  
Out of the manor, Danny spiraled into the air to gain height. When he was high enough he let the surrounding aether wash over him; searching for a suitable place to open a portal. To get the one he wanted would take some finessing. Eventually, he found a spot that was weak enough to open, but not so weak that it couldn't repair itself. With a sigh of relief he carefully clawed the portal open and went through.

  
~*~

  
It took a couple more portal jumps to make it to his destination. When he arrived Danny immediately set about searching for Sam and her research crew. It didn't take too long; the noise that whatever was happening was making could probably be heard outside the valley. "Well it's called Goblin Valley. Let's just hope this goblins are more Labyrinth than Warhammer."

  
He flew to the center of the ruckus and saw Sam hurling equipment at the small, squat, crablike creatures that were trying to get close. Danny paused at the sight. "Or they could be horrifying rock things. I guess that works."

  
Danny snagged Sam by the shirt, pulling her out of the way just as the little things overran the table she had been standing on. She struggled for a moment until she saw he was carrying her. "Danny! I am so glad to see you."

  
He carried her to a high outcropping that the creatures couldn't climb. "So what exactly happened here?"  
She sat down. "Like I said; we found this weird hoodoo formation that looked like it might have a cave in it. But when we moved the stone all those, things, came out. They grabbed the rest of the crew and took them back inside the hoodoo. I've been stuck out here since. I can't get close enough to get the crew out and I can't get these things to leave me alone!" She groaned, holding her head. Then she looked at him. "Any clue what these are, Your Majesty?"

  
He felt himself smile in spite of the situation. Sam respected his title, but that didn't stop her from piling as much snark as possible into using it. One of their little inside jokes; one she shared with Grunkle Stan. He spotted one that had managed to cling to the ledge and froze it. Safely trapped, he turned the thing around to try and see what it was. It was certainly bizarre, looking like a particularly flat crab with red eyes and far more claws than legs. Then it struck him; he had seen this kind of thing before in one of Andrew's books! Now if he could get the name right. "Actually yeah. They're called Trécouche. But they're usually a lot bigger than this."

  
This made Sam jump up. "Bigger? So why aren't they?"

  
Danny dropped it off the side and watched the ice shatter. It melted quickly on the hot stone and soon enough many of the things were gathered around the puddle, drinking like dying men. He pointed at it. "That's why. Trécouche are supposed to live in water, not the desert. They can't get what they need to survive. Most likely they were trapped down there by accident and survived on whatever moisture they could get."

  
He followed the critters path, eyeing the trails leading through the camp until he spotted a collection of stones that was most likely the formation Sam mentioned. He leaned over the edge a bit and spotted a loose rock lying close to it. There weren't anymore things coming out so he assumed the entire colony was out.

  
Sam looked away. "Well if this isn't the habitat they're supposed to be in it would be cruel to keep them here. We need to get them to a better place."

  
Danny started creating large blocks of ice, keeping them off the ground so they wouldn't melt. "Correction; I need to get them out, you need to get your crew."

  
She nodded. "Okay. I assume those giant ice cubes are part of your plan?"

  
"Right, I'll bring them close with the water from these and gather them up. While they're drinking you get your guys." Danny tossed her on his back and leapt over the things, clearing them easily and landing behind them. They stopped and turned, watching. Danny placed the ice down, where it started to melt. At the sight of water the Trécouche began chittering happily; all scuttling up to drink. Danny opened up a portal to an uninhabited lake in Belgium and popped them gently through.

  
Once the last of them were safely in the lake he went to help Sam. When he arrived she was pulling the last of her crew out. It was thankfully a small group (five people not counting Sam); all of them stared at him in awe and some fear. He ignored it and stuck his head in the hole, sniffing around for any stragglers. He found none and reported it back to Sam. "That's good. Now, maybe you can help us fix the camp."

  
"Sounds like a good deal to me."

  
With Danny's help the research crew was up and on their feet in under an hour; they looked at him more kindly after that. It helped that Sam told them more about it. While he packed and stacked the last of the equipment, most of it was badly broken so their expedition was sadly cut short, Sam stayed beside him; directing him where to put the crates.

  
"What were you trying to find out here, anyways?" He asked, standing full height to pull down the shade covers and fold them up.

  
Sam took the covers and packed them in with the chuck box. "After that, Weirdmaggedon, thing happened, pockets of some sort of energy started leaking through. It wasn't ectoplasm, or anything close. But they were similar enough that it got Vlad's attention."

  
Now that she mentioned it, a lot of the equipment did have the Dalv Co. logo on it. "So you were looking for an energy pool. What for?"

  
She handed him a the camera boxes. "Different departments have different reasons. I'm with the environmental section, Cryptobotany specifically; so we came here looking to see if it could be used as alternative energy. I personally wanted to see if it had any affects on the local flora but, as you can see, there's not much of that."

  
It was true. Goblin Valley had some greenery, but this far in the interior it was just too much stone for anything to take root. Sam continued talking, "Tucker usually stays back at the Works; he mostly keeps track of where these pools pop up. But in the last few months they've been showing up more frequently and staying longer."

  
That was troubling. He wondered if it might be connected to that Rake creature that. . . he slapped his head. "I completely forgot why I called in the first place!"

  
Sam put a hand over his mouth to stop the oncoming rant of self loathing. "Calm down. Other things needed to happen first. So, what was it you called for?"

  
At times like this, Danny was glad he didn't need to breathe. He proceeded to tell her everything that had brought him here. First she just watched him, then stared in confusion, then disbelief, then outright concern. She grabbed his gorget and yanked him close. "And you just left?!"

  
Danny wiggled out of her grip, gasping unnecessarily. "No, no! I chased it off. Put the fear of me in it. Dipper and Mabel are working with one of their friends to try and keep it out just in case. But they're not defenseless. I was hoping you might know what this 'world below' was."

  
She nodded. "Yep. It's mostly just a fan creation, but it might be referring to the Under-realm."

  
"Under-realm, huh?"

  
"I don't know where or who started it. All I know is that it became this sort of dimension where all those characters lived. Most importantly, it was described as a dimension literally existing under ours. If just one of those things is real then Under-realm could be the 'world below' this guy was talking about. Which just leaves how they know."

  
He paced during her explanation. At the end a thought struck him. One he didn't like too much. "What if this person is part of this Under-realm?"

  
Sam shuddered at that. "Then at least their on our side. . . I hope."

  
He helped Sam carry the equipment back to the hotel she was staying at, quietly dropping it off and following her (while invisible, of course) to her room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trécouche are a real thing in mythology. I learned about them from abookofcreatures.com. They're working on a physical book right now so they've stopped posting monsters. But what's there is really informative.


	9. The Mark

When all the equipment was hauled up, and Sam had cleaned and double checked it, she flopped on the bed with satisfied groan. Danny curled up on the other bed, questions rolling in his brain. Something kept creeping up to the forefront of his mind, but he didn't have a firm grasp of it; glimpses of white on different colors, a gruff yet soft voice drowning out the sound of thousands of legs. The maddening flashes of color. It still seemed like a dream, but deep down he knew he had been awake somehow.

  
He glanced over at Sam. With everything she had gone through today, he didn't want to trouble her more. But those weird, he could hardly call them visions, things he saw. He couldn't shake the idea that they were connected to all this. _'The only way to know is to ask, Danny.'_

  
"Hey Sam, have any of those stories ever talked about some pale creature?"

  
She laughed. "Very specific, Danny."

  
"Ugh. I can't describe it better than that. I've only seen it a couple times."

  
"Try." Just one word. She was staring a hole through him now. He rubbed his neck, nervously.

  
"Like I said I haven't seen it clearly. It looks kind of human, maybe albino? A little too tall, though. Not crazy tall; just a few feet taller than average, and really lanky."

  
"Have you ever seen if its wearing anything?" The question seemed out of the blue, throwing him off his train of thought. At least for a second.

  
"Hoodie, I think, stained but mostly white; I didn't see anything else. They smelled like blood and, and something else. I'm not sure what."

  
"Oh, boy. This won't be easy. Lots of human characters wear hoodies, but a white one only belongs to one. Problem is they aren't albino. I'll have to look into it. In the meantime you should probably be heading back."

  
"Right. I'll be sure to- huh?" Sam grabbed his hand and put some sort of device in it. It had all the smooth lines favored by Dalv co devices. It was shaped like a shell; small divots lined the sides, each held a thin piece of rubberized silicon for grip. The large screen made it clear this was Vlad's version for a smartphone. He held it up to Sam questioningly.

  
"Vlad gave those to everyone in Fenton Works so we can keep in touch. It's basically a more advanced version of the communicators we used to use. Don't worry, it's easy to figure out. Now get going." She practically shoved him out the window; he had to tuck the device in a fold of his cloak to keep from dropping it. He waved goodbye and opened a portal back to the Pines' home.

  
~*~

  
A lot can happen in a few minutes, and even more happened in the few days Danny was gone. His arrival to the house was greeted with battle cries and a vigorous dousing with, some kind of fluid, considering the faintly acrid smell he didn't want to think about it. He phased it off him and tossed a grumpy stare at the twins who, to their credit, looked a little guilty. Dipper lowered his water gun. "Sorry Danny. We thought you were something else."

  
"Clearly. Just what the heck did you think I was that warranted. . . whatever that was."

  
Mabel went and got a towel and wiped up the. . . liquid. "Lot's of weirdos have been showing up around the neighborhood." At Danny's alarmed look she continued hastily. "But no one's tried to get in. It's like they can smell you or something."

  
He wrinkled his nose, then looked to Dipper. "Any of them show up more than once? And did you get anymore messages?"

  
Dipper gave him a frustrated look and groaned. "Well, Technus managed to find where it came from, and we sent a few but they haven't responded. So either they abandoned the site entirely or they just can't get to a computer."

  
That was odd. "Why wouldn't they be able to get to a computer? Even the ones in the library can send emails."

  
Mabel wadded up the towel and tossed it down the chute. "Maybe they move around a lot? Like they're homeless." She gasped. "Or a MURDERER!"

  
Both boys moaned exasperatedly. "Why would a serial killer want to help us? Or even be involved in something likes this?"

  
Danny paused. "She might have a point. A surprising number of murderers have some sort of superstition or occult beliefs. Heck, there's a whole bunch of them that think they have some mission from God or the Devil wants them to."

  
All three sighed; the idea that some sort of supernatural killer was in on this was disturbing to the extreme. There was only so much magic could do to stop a human killer; powers or not. Dipper decided to change the subject before they got depressed over nothing. "Did Sam have any answers?"

  
"Not many. That 'world below' might be a place called the Under-realm. It was a fan creation but if Rake exists it might too. She didn't say how to get there, though." He decided not to mention his other question as it didn't apply to the situation. No need to worry the twins about something possibly unrelated. "She's looking into it and will call if she finds anything. So I'm waiting on that."

  
While they stood around, a loud ringing started up in Dipper's room. Danny pinned his ears back, the noise almost painful. "What the heck?!"

  
Dipper ran to his, the others following. "I set up an alarm in case we got a reply from that ghost account. I guess there's a response."

  
He jumped in the chair, sliding to the computer, and opened the message. It was short, predictably. But this time a picture was included.

>   
> "RE: hello, can you tell me more?  
> Not now, wrong time. watch for doors where there should not be doors. Rake gone, dealt with myself. Use this, I'll find you. Be careful, fear is coming."

  
It was the same mark that started this whole search, now displayed in stark black lines on a white background. They stared at it. Mabel broke the silence first. "It kind of looks like a lizard. Or a dragon maybe."

  
Dipper and Danny stared at her, equally confused by the comment. She traced the picture with her finger. "See? Here are horns and the head, then there's the body; it's sitting down. And the tail goes all around it over to here. Now do you see it?"

  
They could. And Dipper didn't like the connections he just made. "That mark was in the picture that was posted. They kept saying it was found near Cheshire Butcher kills! If it belongs to the person sending these, then this could be even worse!" He started pacing; Danny subtly pulled off the excess anxiety before it could build to a panic attack.

  
"Even if this guy is a killer, it's pretty clear they want to help us to some degree. Besides," Danny stepped closer to the picture, trying to get a feel from it. "I don't think they would hurt you two. I might be in the line of fire, but that's because I'm not human."

  
"And why wouldn't we be in danger? You said you felt all sorts of bad stuff from that mark." Mabel wrinkled the edge of her sweater.

  
"I did. There's a lot of death linked to that thing; a lot of sadness, too. But I think the sadness came from kids. Every death I felt was an adult, not a kid. And judging from how those kids were feeling, the victims were not nice people."

  
Dipper put a hand on his chin. He thought for a moment then his eyes lit up. He slid his chair over to the bookshelf and pulled out a book of criminology. He flicked through the pages, finger trailing down each until he spotted what he was looking for. He showed them the page in question. There was no picture, not even a police sketch. "This is the Cheshire Butcher, body count; over 100 known deaths. And check this out, it says that all his kills were of people who were later found to have caused some sort of harm to minors or young teens."

  
Now he had their attention. "A mission killer, then." Danny said plainly. "If our 'friend' and this Butcher are one and the same then he won't do anything to hurt you two. But he's still an unreliable ally. After all, we don't know what he considers harm."

  
He curled around Dipper tapping the screen lightly. "It's up to you, Dipper. If you decide to call this guy then we'll have to keep an eye on him."

  
"I'll. . . I'll think about it." Dipper printed out this picture as well, tucking it inside the book so he wouldn't forget it. With that decided the Mabel dragged the boys downstairs for good dinner of, what else, pancakes.

  
But neither of them could shake the curiosity that was awakened by the doors. Doors where there shouldn't be doors. Was it related to the Rake? And just what was meant by "dealt with?" Did they kill it?

  
~*~

  
What none of them realized was Mabel's idle tracing of the lines had already activated the sigil's latent magic. But without intent its power was weak. Its call would go unnoticed for some time; even with its creator close by. And it's creator was close.

  
It had been easy enough to get in the library. All he'd needed was his old clothes. The stern lines and stark black and white of the nun's robes got him past with nothing more than a glance and a sigh of, "Kids these days. What will they think of next?"

  
Jeff may have been homeless, but he wasn't without his own resources. Before leaving the foundation he had contacted a friend of his and left him in charge of his messages; with explicit instructions to contact him if the kid managed to get a message through. Since that had happened Jeff was sitting in front of a fairly decent looking computer; typing his reply as his partner chattered to him, static laced voice adding a layer of dull buzz to the place.

  
"This place is actually pretty up to date, software wise at least. The model itself is kind of old and the firewall has more holes in it than a fish net. Honestly, I don't know why you're so worried about all this. So a Rake got loose, and sure, that doesn't happen very often; it still happens though. Can't keep them locked in."

  
"BEN." He growled, from inside the computer came a questioning sound. "Shut up. I'll explain next time. Now just send this." This message had a warning of new activity and a clean copy of his sigil. BEN gave a glitchy sigh but took off with it. Jeff groaned and leaned back in the chair, careful to keep his hood up. This kid clearly wasn't going to be scared off so now he just had to keep them safe from a distance. Which meant staying nearby for the inevitable questions he would get back.

  
For now he was close to where another sigil had been placed. So he would worry about that first. _'Right after I take off this itchy dress.'_


	10. A musical demise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jeff decides to whistle while he works.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CHAPTER SPECIFIC WARNING PLEASE READ! GRAPHIC MUTILATION/GENITAL MUTILATION. 
> 
> THIS CHAPTER HAS NO CONNECTION TO THE PLOT AND CAN BE SKIPPED IF THE ABOVE DISTURBS YOU.

_Ding Dong_   
_I know you can hear me_   
_Open up the door_   
_I only want to play a little_

  
To say Jeff was having fun with this one would be an understatement. It was almost a cliched situation; a relative who couldn't keep their hands to themselves, his least favorite kind of person. The kid who summoned him wasn't actually at the house, but had wanted them gone before he had to visit.

  
He spotted the bastard through a porch window. As soon as their gazes met the man slammed the shutters closed and locked them. But he could still see him; he teased him with that knowledge. Pushing him through the house with his awful grin until the man was trembling behind his front door. Then he left him alone; keeping quiet and out of sight until the fear ebbed away. Then he moved in again, not yet singing. But he still spoke, using another person's voice instead of his own.

  
He laughed as the lock clicked and the door was thrown wide. He darted past his target; catching his knife on the soft flesh of a calf. The man's smile melted into terror as he realized what he had just done. Jeff grinned viciously. To think, all he had to do to get in was imitate the kid for a bit; pretend they'd showed up early. Uncle Grabby had been all too happy to let him in. And so the fun began.

  
~*~

  
_Ding Dong_   
_Here I come to find you_   
_Hurry up and run_   
_Let’s play a little game and have fun_

  
He'd been at this for almost an hour now; scaring the guy from place to place and gas-lighting him like there was no tomorrow. Which for him there wouldn't be. He heard him scramble from his hiding place, leg dragging from a slashed Achilles. He continued to sing, using the little girl voice that terrified people so much.

  
_I hear your footsteps_   
_Thumping loudly through the hallways_   
_I can hear your sharp breaths_   
_You’re not very good at hiding_

  
He spotted him as he tried to get downstairs. With a wild laugh he lunged towards him, catching his shoulder with a well timed slash. Jeff was not about to end this quickly. This man was the kind of person he hated most. Not even God Himself would stop the pain and fear he would inflict on him. The wonderful uncle swung at him and knocked him away. He slid to a crouch; the uncle used the opportunity to get downstairs and shut the door. Jeff grinned, now he could sing his favorite part. He kicked the door down.

  
_Knock Knock_   
_I’m inside your room, now_   
_Where is it you’ve hid?_   
_Our game of hide and seek’s about to end_

  
He padded into the room. From what he could tell it was just a guest bedroom, although the faint scent of metal told him there was a gunsafe somewhere.

  
_I’m coming closer_   
_Looking underneath your bed but_   
_You’re not there, I wonder_   
_Could you be inside the closet?_

  
As soon as he sang those lines a gunshot rang out; the bullet pierced through his neck and he fell. The uncle stepped out from the closet, right where Jeff had been about to check, pistol shaking in his hand. Panting from adrenaline, he walked over to the body; recoiling from the stranger's ugly, yet oddly beautiful, appearance.

"Have to. . . get rid of the body."

  
He leaned down and reached out to grab the corpse. Jeff's eyes opened and he grabbed the man, taking him to the floor and perching on his chest. The final lines coming triumphantly as the knife came down.

  
_"Ding dong, you were hiding here! Now you’re it!"_

  
The knife sunk into the stomach. _"Ding dong, finally found you, dear. Now you’re it!"_

  
The knife took an eye next. _"Ding ding, looks like I have won; now you’re it."_

  
Jeff bent over his face, tongue falling out as he smiled; giving his victim the full scope of his smile. The poor, lovable uncle gave one piercing scream as he was given his final words.

  
_"Ding dong. Pay the consequence."_

  
The knife came down one last time, slicing through the neck and leaving the head to loll at odd angles as the corpse was dragged away.

  
~*~

  
He was dead, but Jeff wasn't satisfied. It wasn't often he was called on for such a disgusting individual. He would not be content with his kill until he made it clear to the world just how the punishment had been earned.

  
Jeff carried the dead man out of the house and to a nearby exercise park. At this time of night the place was empty of everything but a faint autumn breeze. He brought his kill to a set of captain's chair machines and dumped him in one. This time, instead of carving in his trademark grin, Jeff stripped the man and sliced into his thigh. As blood spilled out he became more manic in his motions.

  
When he finally stopped, the man's body had been mutilated to the point of being unrecognizable, most of the skin flayed clean and dragged off; as had much of his face. Jeff had cut off his genitals and stuffed them in a gash over the heart. Through it all he had maintained enough state of mind to leave the mouth and fingers untouched. It wouldn't be much fun if the police couldn't identify the corpse at all. And all the damage left his message very clear. With a last, quiet laugh he left; joyfully licking the blood from his hands and his blade. He started to sing again as he left the park; a different song, upbeat yet morbid.

  
_"Die, die, we all pass away, but don't wear a frown, cause it's really okay! You might try to hide, and you might try to pray, but we all end up the remains of the day!"_


	11. Home and a belated revenge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun fact: Jeff and Toby's dialogue almost gave spellcheck a heart attack.

The Rift was still agitated when he entered. It bucked him through several doors, entirely out of his control, until he found the Wub-beast realm and got them to play something calmer. He remained there unitl he was sure the Rift wasn't going to throw any more temper tantrums; it may have been sapient to a degree, but you still can't talk to a living dimension. He rambled out his own frustrations while he made his way to his destination.

  
"Rakes are bad enough on their own, and sure there was only one of them, but if a whole fuckin' pack got loose then who knows where they are now. Not to mention I've got this damn itch in the back of my skull that started yesterday. I can't scratch it either! I mean I probably could but touchin' my brain is gross as shit. Then there's the-oof!"

  
He was cut off by the abrupt arrival of a round door set in petrified tree; the Rift's way of telling him to shut up. He gave it a light, teasing kick and opened the door. Immediately the scent of leaf decay and old growth forest reached him. He stepped through and took a deep breath, clearing his lungs of death and city air. The Blackleaf Forest was one of the oldest places in the Under-realm, except for the Abyss. It was so old that many believed it's trees were connected to forests in the Over-realm, and those were the forests Slenderman was most powerful in. Of course, Jeff knew that was nonsense; Slenderman was powerful where ever he was, he just liked forests for scare potential. The Council had once tried to build on it's ground; to infringe on its silence, but was fought so fiercely by the Slenderman, and the forest itself, that they were forced to give up and leave it be.

  
Slenderman was another interesting point. In his younger days the two of them had butted heads continuously over one little thing; Jeff protected children, Slender killed them. But as time passed the old Fae gradually came over to Jeff's way of seeing things; that or he just got sick of Jeff getting in the way all the time. Either way the two of them got along fairly well now; enough for Slender to offer him a place in his own home. Jeff always turned down a permanent home; he hated staying in one place almost as much as he hated child abusers. All the same, Slender kept a room made up for the rare times when he did come to stay.

  
After all, it's not as if Slender didn't have room for a guest or two. Outside of a few of his best proxies and some loyal followers, such as BEN and his pal Smiledog, there weren't many residents in the manor. Far and away from being a house of literal horrors, it was the perfect place for him. The weird and out of place was his raison d'etre ****for existing; he was THE fear of the abnormal, after all. Most of the proxies had one or two things out of the ordinary about them, but could pass for human with very little effort. Subtleties like that were his bread and butter when it came to strange anything.

  
As for the rest of the live ins? Most weren't human in the slightest, but still human looking. The others were more like animals, if not in appearance then in behavior. If he ever decided to settle in the Under-realm this would be his first choice.

  
The lights were off when he approached, but since most of the people inside had some form of night vision, light didn't matter. He knocked on the door and listened for the quiet shuffling that announced someone arriving. The door cracked open and a pale face with empty black eyes stared back at him. He waved. "Hey, Tim."

  
The door closed again and the light flicked on before it opened a second time. The pale face revealed itself to be a mask as it slid off. Tim yawned, waved sleepily and let Jeff in.

  
"Is it that late down here? Ya usually don't look so dead."

  
Tim yawned again; Jeff eyed him worriedly. His pale skin looked somehow more sallow than usual. "Seriously, are ya okay?"

  
He waved the question off. " 'M fine. Slender just brought in someone new and they're having problems adjusting. Keeps waking me up." He mumbled. Jeff blinked in surprise. Tim's voice, much like the rest of him, had changed during his time as a proxy. It had turned soft, a quiet whisper that sent a shiver down his spine. A far cry from the higher, angrier tone he had when they first met.

  
As if on cue a cry of fear came down the stairs. Tim's eye twitched and he growled. "There he goes again. Give me a second."

  
Jeff stopped him, he pointed at himself and raised a brow. Understanding the silent question, he waved him past with a "Be my guest."

  
They went up the stairs and Tim led him to a room that had been empty on his last visit. Now he could hear the faint sobbing coming from inside. He opened the door enough to peek, he'd been attacked more than once in the manor by a startled newbie; he hoped to avoid that this time. The door creaked slightly, and the person inside jerked towards the sound. Jeff winced at the overly violent motion; especially seeing as it set off a series of twitches along their arms. They looked around as though seeing it all for the first time then focused on Jeff's glowing eyes; then widened as they saw the surgical mask he wore.

  
"N-not another one of you masked fre-eaks. Just go away a-and let, let me go!"

  
Jeff's eyes locked on him as the kid's head jerked to the side. He walked in and shut the door, blocking out Tim's protests. "Easy kid, I just wanna talk to ya. Let's start easy. Who are ya?"

  
The kid's head twitched again, followed by a clenched jaw. "To-Toby. Toby Rogers."

  
"Alright, Toby. How'd ya get here?"

  
He looked confused. "I don't know. Why are you a-asking this?"

  
Jeff looked him over a little more closely, taking note of the bruising on his arms and face and the bandage on his cheek. "Just tryin' to get a bead on ya. Tourrettes?"

  
Now Toby looked surprised, but nodded anyway. Then he told him everything he could remember; right up until he passed out outside his burning home. By the end of it Jeff's jaw was clenched so tight Toby could hear his teeth grinding. "Calm down, Jeff. His parents are already dead."

  
Both of them jumped a little, as neither had heard Tim enter the room. Jeff took a few deep breaths. He took off his mask to breathe better and noticed Toby put a hand over his bandage. He scooted closer and hooked a finger in his cheek, pulling it open to show him his grin. Toby smiled a tiny smile. He carefully scooted closer and crawled under Jeff's arm. "Ya ain't alone here, got it? This family's a bit fucked up, but they're better than where ya came from by far. So chill, relax and you'll learn the ropes quick."

  
Toby did relax. But he only went back to sleep after Jeff promised to stay with him; he suffered night terrors. Jeff agreed and Tim helped him bring some extra bedding in for him; he piled it up on the floor where Toby could grab him if he needed to. He crawled in and buried himself, getting undressed in the pile (given that he only wore a hoodie that was easy). He snagged Tim before the other left. "Let the big guy know I'm here 'kay? Don't want him losin' his shit cuz I didn't let him know I was comin'."

  
Tim nodded and left. Things were going to be interesting come morning.

  
~*~

  
Interesting turned out to be an understatement. As soon as Jeff came downstairs he was tackled to the ground by BEN and Smiledog. The digital ghost talking a hundred miles an hour about some sort of forum. Jeff sputtered as he tried to talk through a shower of dog spit from Smile's incessant kissing.

  
With the greetings out of the way it was time for breakfast. Jeff could already hear the gravelly rumble of Eyeless Jack as he argued with Laughing Jack for the hundredth time over the reasons he couldn't eat anything but kidneys and no, it wasn't bad for him. He sat down and BEN plonked down beside him. "So what's with the sudden concern over one person's conspiracy theories?"

  
"It's not theories. This kid's got real shit plastered all over that site, even videos of things I've never seen. That Rake I caught wasn't just wanderin' around; it was homin' in on his place. From the stuff he's written it already got in before it was chased out."

  
"Sounds bad."

  
"It gets worse. I don't think that was a one time thing. I'd bet my own knife the kid's a sensitive; freaks are gonna track him like flies on a hog. I'm wonderin' if somethin' didn't snap between here and up there."

  
Eyeless finally won the argument by biting Jack's neck and tossing the clown on the floor. He licked the splatter of blood off his grayish skin with multiple bluish black tongues before putting in his two cents. "If anyone would know about that wouldn't it be you?"

  
Jeff groaned, head falling back to an uncomfortable angle. "The Rift's got nothin' to do with this kinda thing. It's the veil or whatever it's called down here."

  
There was a moan of pain from below the table and a clawed hand, index extended, popped up. "Maybe Ms. P knows what's going on, silky."

  
He laid his head on his folded arms, sighing. "She might. Don't know where she lives now, though."

  
"I-I do." Everyone turned to see Toby standing just outside the kitchen, curled in nervously. At all the sudden attention he briefly debated going back to his room and never speaking again; then he saw Jeff. He rushed to take the seat next to him, feeling more relaxed already. Jeff nudged him to continue. "Oh, r-right. I w-wasn't out when I came here a-and she talked to that t-tall guy for a bit. I remember where she said she l-lived."

  
Jeff was just a little stunned. "Learn somethin' new every day then." He stood and straightened his hoodie out. "I'll head over there. Unless, ol' Slendy-dendy has somethin' he wants from me first."

  
"Actually I do have a few requests." Toby shrieked and jumped on Jeff, Scooby Doo style; not used to the being's sudden appearances. Jeff set him down and patted his back a little. "Sorry. Jeffery I'd like you to show Toby around the city, to get him more used to what's down here."

  
He gave a sloppy salute and headed upstairs. "You eat, Tobes, there's a lot to see out there."

  
~*~

  
Toby stuck close to him for most of the tour, twitching occasionally when he was caught off guard by a sight or sound or when something came too close. Most creatures didn't though; one look at Jeff was enough to tell them to back off. A couple of hours later and the two of them were sitting in a cafe; Toby looking around in awe. Jeff grinned at the sight.

  
"Just cuz we're monsters doesn't mean we don't like a cup of coffee now and then." Toby smiled. For all his disturbing behavior and looks, he found it easy to be around him. As they stood to leave the cafe a squeaky but rough voice addressed Toby.

  
"Hey there kid! Looks like you got yourself in a rough spot there!"

  
Toby stopped, leaving Jeff to keep walking, unaware he'd lost him. He looked down to see a patchwork doll staring at him. The doll waved for him to get closer so Toby knelt down. "W-what do you m-mean Mister uhh?"

  
"Ickbar's the name. And that guy you're hanging around is bad news. Trust me."

  
"B-but he's been so nice. E-ven if he do-oes swear a-a lot."

  
Ickbar jumped on him, grabbing his shirt and pulling itself closer to his face. "That's what he does! He acts friendly then, when you trust him most. Scch!"

It dragged a hand across it's nonexistent throat. Toby felt a shudder run through him. The doll dropped to floor."But luckily for you I happen to specialize in dealing with monsters like that. All I need in return is a few measly teeth."

  
Toby clapped a hand over his mouth. He was more confused than when he woke up down here. Suddenly he heard a rapid tapping on the tile floor and an enraged Jeff launched past him, grabbing the doll. "YA LITTLE SLIMY FUCK! I WARNED YA, YA PATCHWORK PUKE-STAIN. YA HALF STITCHED BASTARD! NOW YOU'RE GONNA GET IT!"

  
Toby sat on the floor, stunned, as Jeff went crashing through the employee doors to the kitchen. He scrambled up when he heard the industrial disposer start up. He ran in to see Jeff holding the doll by it's head as it struggled. There was a glint in his working eye that froze him to the spot. Jeff brought the doll close and hissed to it. "I told ya all those years ago. . . I catch ya fuckin' with kids again and this is what. You. Get."

  
Grin so wide the corners of his mouth cracked and bled, Jeff gleefully let the doll fall in; watching with sickening joy as the disposal tore Ickbar to shreds in seconds. When the sounds of screaming and ripping died down he leaned heavily against the wall, only just having the presence of mind to shut it off. He was panting hard, a sheen of sweat just visible on his skin. Toby shuffled over, twitching hard as he was scared out of his mind right now. "Jeff?"

  
The killer's head turned so sharply he feared his neck would snap. The gleam left his eye once he caught sight of the expression on Toby's face. He gasped and wiped his face, muttering. "Shit, I'm sorry. That guy just. . . pisses me right off. He's gone now though. So that's that. Let's go see Ms. P before I get kicked out. Again."

  
Toby wisely stayed silent and took the lead, grabbing Jeff's hand and all but dragging him down the way he remembered. It turned out that wasn't needed, as barely two blocks down he nearly tripped over an oddly long-necked, half-bald cat with a ridge of black fur over its head and back. The cat gave the same unnerving grin possessed by Smiledog. "Hello, Jeff. I didn't expect you to be down here. Considering what happened last time."

  
Jeff just rolled his eye. "Cut the rumor mongerin' Grinny, is Ms. P with ya? I got somethin' I wanna ask her."

  
"What is that, Jeff?" If Toby hadn't been wearing his goggles he was sure they'd have fallen out. The lady in front of them looked normal enough, if one ignored her sharp teeth and large red eyes, but her neck, goodness her neck! It was nearly as long as her torso! Jeff was unfazed however, and waved lazily at her.

  
"Sup Ms. P. Looks like you're gettin' due for a trim."

  
She giggled and flapped her hand at him before picking up Grinny. The cat wound around her neck and curled up like a scarf. "Well? Don't keep me waiting."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ms. P was created by Comickit


	12. Seeking the Breach

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The pasta trio (plus one cat) head to Gravity Falls for answers. And land in the den of a certain king.

The three of them walked down the street as Jeff explained the situation. In between sentences he would turn to Toby and explain to him as well. From this he learned that Ms. P (whose name was short for Ms. Pencilneck) was, along with a few other magic users, in charge of maintaining the integrity of the border between the Under and Over realms.

  
Originally the only way to pass through was by using Earth Wells; they were ultimately deemed too dangerous, and so a series of gates were set up around the Under-realm. Some creatures were able to travel through the border itself without the use of wells or gates; Jeff was one of these, Rakes another.

  
"But others seem to be gettin' out now. And it doesn't take a genius to tell they ain't using the gates. So have ya noticed anythin' weird down here?"

  
Having arrived at her home, Ms. P shepherded them inside and bustled out finding something sweet for Jeff while she thought it over. "Not here, but I did hear a rumor about something major happening in the Over-realm. It really only happened in one spot though so you would probably have to find the people involved to know."

  
Jeff dragged his hand over his face. "Ugh, more jumpin' around. Do ya at least know where it happened?"

  
Ms. P set a tray of cake brownies on Jeff's lap; the treats would keep him still for a good while. "It's a little tourist town. I'm actually supposed to go look into it. With you here it'll go a lot faster."

  
"Won't ya get in trouble for draggin' an outsider along?" Jeff mumbled through a mouthful of brownie. Ms. P outright cackled.

  
"The rules are _very_ lax when it comes to people commanding entire sentient dimensions." They both laughed at that, and Jeff shoved the tray towards Toby claiming he was so thin looking at him made him hungry again. So Toby tucked in as well, careful of the bandage. Jeff watched him, tempted to pull out his book to find out what was under it. Then he remembered he left it at the foundation and threw himself off the couch, cursing up a storm.

  
Both Toby and Ms. P jumped back, Grinny flinging himself to safety. It was Toby who reacted first. "W-what's wrong?"

  
"I left my goddamn book back at the foundation. Fuck! I hate leaving my shit there." He licked his mouth clean and strided over to her door. "I'll be right back Ms. P, I just gotta get my book. Make sure I didn't leave anythin' else there. Fuckin' dumbass."

  
The door slammed shut and Toby sat shaking. Eventually Grinny peaked out of his hiding spot and crawled over to him. He squirmed under one arm and dragged his body close, purring like rocks in a cement mixer. Toby put him in his lap and continued to pet him. The skin felt weird, a little too warm for a cat, but the fur was soft as silk. "So do we just w-ait?"

  
Ms. P shrugged. "I really think it'd be good to have him come with so, yeah. Don't worry, it won't take him long."

  
Not long apparently meant two hours because that was how long it took before Jeff threw the door open, still cussing and now sporting a bandage around his right arm. "Blood tests?! I'm gone for barely a day and they wanna do a fuckin' blood test? Did they think I randomly got AIDS or somethin'!?"

  
He stomped across the room and let a thick book bounce off the couch, sending the now empty tray bouncing to the floor. Ms. P rounded on him, ready to give him a dressing down for it, when Toby picked up the tray and poked Jeff's shoulder. He snarled at him before looking him in the eye and calming down almost instantly. He sighed roughly and rubbed his left eye, popping it out briefly to Toby's surprise.

  
He popped it back in and adjusted it. "Sorry about that. It wasn't Kon-kon there this time and I just can't stand anyone else there. Kon's the only one who actually uses my damn name." He sighed again. "I can't blame 'em. They had a containment breach with a shapeshifter. They were just makin' sure I'm me. Thanks for the distraction Toby."

  
Toby didn't have a chance to ask what he meant before the four of them (Grinny around Ms. P's neck) set out. Jeff briefly contemplated taking Toby back to the manor but decided not to. Technically bringing him to a Gate would be "showing him around". Plus if he flipped out again, the kid could distract him pretty fast.

  
As for Toby, he clung to Jeff even tighter than he had in town. Little shudders roamed through him, threatening to turn into full on tics, but having a hold of Jeff's sleeve helped keep the worst of it down. The Gate they needed was out on the south end of the forest, through the boggy parts. "Got any problems with water, Tobes?"

  
He shook his head. Water wasn't an issue; fire on the other hand. Hopefully it wasn't something he would deal with soon.

  
~*~

  
The Gate was rather grand, given the environment it sat in. The three of them were up to their knees (or ankles in Jeff's case) in water that was the color and smell of old tea. The Gate itself was an old Victorian iron affair, with plenty of embellishments and not a speck of rust. A large log drifted past them and Toby eyed it nervously, nearly leaping into Jeff's arms when it blinked back. Jeff noticed his alarm and looked over. "Don't worry about that thing. It's just a baby snoligoster. Pretty harmless, 'less ya happen to be a fish or a drunk lumberjack."

  
"T-that doesn't h-help mu-uch."

  
Jeff hefted him out of the water and hauled him through the gate on his shoulder with barely a struggle. Toby shut his eyes to block out the sudden glare of light as they exited the Under-realm. And arrived on a boggy island in the middle of a lake. He wriggled until Jeff got the idea and put him down.

  
Ms. P looked slightly perturbed by their surroundings; Jeff was equally confused. "What's wro-ong, guys?"

  
It was Grinny who answered. "The Gate should have let us out across the lake, not in the middle. All this water is unnerving." His ridge fluffed up.

  
"So somethin' made it move. Problem is what. There ain't much out there that can do that."

  
While Jeff and Ms. P discussed the issues of the moved Gate, Toby heard a noise and left to check it out. He didn't see Grinny slip off to follow him. "This p-place is weird. It's all f-foggy, but only here."

  
It was true. The air surrounding the island was clear, but as soon as one drew close the place became shrouded in thick fog. The soil was wet constantly yet still firm, like permafrost. Now that he thought of it, the whole place was nearly as cold as early winter; there was even frost forming on his pants where they were wet. An odd grinding came through the fog and he followed it to the far shore where a colony of beavers seemed to be living.

  
"Well, there's something you don't see everyday." Grinny said, climbing on Toby's shoulder. Toby nearly threw him off when he twitched, having neither heard nor felt the cat. The two of them watched the colony cut bricks from the stone on the shore and carry it to their dam, slotting the stones in with a little mud for mortar. Toby was amazed. He wanted to keep watching but he could just hear Jeff calling for him. Grinny hopped down and led the way back; the solid earth not allowing for footprints.

  
He emerged from the brush to find Jeff glaring at him, hands on his hips and one foot tapping. Toby almost expected him to pull out a wooden spoon and take a swing at him. "Why'd ya run off like that?"

  
It certainly felt like his mom scolding him. "I-I thought I heard something, and I d-did! The beavers here can u-use tools and stuff!"

  
Ms. P raised an eyebrow at but Jeff didn't react. "In a town like this I ain't surprised. Anyways we found a way off this rock so let's go."

  
The method they found was a fishing boat that had been docked there and left abandoned. It was still in good shape so they hopped in and took it to the opposite shore. They left it in some shrubs a good ways inland, and made sure it was hidden just in case.

  
They spent a few hours tramping around the woods, not finding anything of note, until they came across a clearing where a decently sized wood house stood. They stayed hidden, watching the crowds going in and out. It looked like a museum or something. Either way it might give them a clue about what happened here. First they needed to get in. Ms. P wanted to send Toby; as he was the most normal looking of them, but he had no idea what to search for.

  
So in the end they all went in; Jeff pulled his hood up and took a long grey skirt from his bag, slipping it on. Ms. P used a glamour to look human, and Toby was surprised by it. She giggled and fluffed her hair. "Oops, sorry. It's standard for the less human looking of us to use glamours on the surface. Jeff doesn't need one because people just sort of, ignore him."

  
Jeff tapped his foot. "Let's hurry. The next group's headin' in."

  
They rushed to the small crowd and wedged their way to the center to avoid notice. The people crowded inside the kitschy looking building. Jeff took the time to note the fake displays and over-embellished portraits. Toby stayed by his side and Ms. P stopped when she noticed them. The tourists moved past them. All on their own, it wasn't long before the owner zeroed in on them.

  
"Hey there, dudes. I'm Mr. Mystery and Welcome to the Mystery Shack." All three jumped a bit; Jeff nearly pulled out his knife, ignorant of the surroundings. He narrowed his eyes, left glowing ever so slightly, and quickly assessed the newcomer.

  
_'Stocky, chubby, kinda looks like a naked gopher man in a suit. Not much trouble.'_ After he was satisfied this guy wouldn't be a threat he scoffed and made to walk away, motioning for his friends to follow. "Let's go we ain't gonna find anythin' in this tourist trap."

  
Mr. Mystery looked a little downtrodden, but just for a second. "Come on. You can find anything at the Mystery Shack."

  
"Oh yeah, how about what happened three years ago?" Jeff snapped back.

  
The smile finally dropped from his face. He looked around; all the tourists had long since passed through the gift shop. He crossed his arms and glared, or tried to. He didn't look too intimidating. "You dudes from the government?"

  
Well, that was an unexpected turn. Jeff didn't know what to say. The foundation was a government institution as far as he knew, but he wasn't technically with them. Ms. P was in a similar conundrum; she hadn't thought of a cover story if they were caught. Luckily Toby had them both covered, he nudged his way to the front and smiled benignly at the guide. "We're l-legend tripper-ers. We wanted to see what th-this place had to offer."

  
This brought the smile back to Mr. Mystery's face. "Well why didn't you just say so, dude? Gravity Falls is top shelf weirdness. Follow me."

  
Jeff patted Toby on the back. "Quick thinker. Big guy'll like that."

  
The guy brought them through to the gift shop, where he approached a curvy woman behind the counter. They kissed in that way that newly married couples do. "Will you handle the next tours, Melody? These guys are looking for the real stuff."

  
"Sure thing, Soos." She smartly saluted and popped up a register closed sign, then nipped the fez off him and went to wait by the door. Soos sighed like a lovestruck teen until Jeff cleared his throat. He flushed and brought them to a small kitchen off the living room. He pulled out the chairs and pushed them all in one. Jeff huffed, not liking being handled like that.

  
Soos nearly fell into his own chair before taking a deep breathe and getting it all out in one.

  
"Okay so three years ago was this thing called Weirdmaggedon and oh, dudes, it was totally crazy. This triangle demon named Bill ripped a hole in our dimension and took over the town. Then we all got together in a giant robot and beat the snot out of him for awhile before he caught us. I don't know what happened in between, heh, because I was stuck in a tapestry but we won and all his weirdos got sucked back in. Day saved." He tried to lean back in his chair all cool-like but fell over.

  
Jeff coughed.

  
~*~

  
They left the Mystery Shack with little in the way of answers. Ms. P was throwing out suggestions; Jeff ignored them all in favor of his own line of thought. When he did come to a conclusion he did not like it one bit; it spelled bad things for the future.

  
Ms. P eventually noticed the lack of input from him and laid a hand on his arm. "Jeff? Are you okay?"

  
He groaned, dragging a hand through his hair. "Not really. I'm thinkin' this demon may have done somethin' more serious. I bet ya that thing caused a ripple and the whole dimension's feelin' it!"

  
She gasped, causing Grinny to put a worried paw on her cheek. "If that's true then I need to report it right away. Come on!"

  
She darted off without checking if they were following.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's official, spellcheck hates the way Jeff talks.


	13. Welcome to the Ghost Zone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jeff blunders his way through the Ghost Zone and learns some truth about the Rift.

On returning to the Under-realm Jeff brought Toby back to the manor. Slenderman gave him a scolding for taking Toby through a Gate but he really couldn't argue with his reasons for doing so. In the end he just cuffed him on the ear and let him go. Jeff took that as his cue to head back to the Over-realm; right after he got BEN to do him a favor. That itch of his was getting worse and he needed to find the source before he went, well crazier.

  
As he entered the Rift this time he found it had dropped him back in that strange part he hated. He turned around to leave but the entry he used had floated off. Worse still he seemed to be stuck on a rather large rock with nothing but a violently red castle. With nowhere else to go he figured he would head in and try to loop back to a more familiar part of the Rift.

  
"Whoever built this place was either blind or hated eyeballs." The motif of way too much red continued inside the castle as well; broken only by the occasional bit of green or black. It was times like this that made him glad he was practically blind in his left eye. "Although by the time I'm outta here I'll probably be blind in both."

  
There was little in the way of extra doors and he was pretty put out by the level of booby traps. By the time he kicked open the door to the throne room he was no longer interested in leaving. Now he just wanted to give the owner a piece of his mind. Much to his frustration the only things in the throne room were a plastic pumpkin full of brown slop and a black sword, and a giant sarcophagus. Thoroughly put out now, Jeff stomped up the elaborate stairway to the sarcophagus and spat on it; taking great pleasure in the way the acid ate away the gaudy paint. He continued taking out his aggression by grabbing it in his tentacles and flinging it around. As the last shot he slammed it on the pumpkin, covering it in the slop.

  
He cackled joyfully and gave it one last kick, cracking the lid and knocking the sword away. Looking around for more things to break he found that a window had been broken out and decided to take the exit given. It didn't take him back to the Rift but it did let him out of the eye-searing castle to the cooler colored dirt; stones had drifted closer and he hopped on one to get away from the place.

  
Eyes locked on the coming surroundings, Jeff didn't see the bright flash of purple light erupt from the windows of the castle nor did he hear the deep booming laughter that followed behind.

  
~*~

  
This place wasn't that bad actually; once his eyes got used to all the purple and green. It had a serenity the rest of the Rift lacked, and a surprisingly pleasing vibe to it all. Jeff had been drifting for the better part of an hour just taking it in. Whatever part of the Rift this was he was going to find a sure route to it and come more often. So far he had passed several places he thought of checking out, but he had no way to steer the rock he was on so he just tried to remember where they were.

  
He was just reaching a zen state when the chunk he was on crashed into something, sending him rolling off and startling him. He jumped up, back arched and tendrils lashing like an eldritch cat. When he calmed down enough to actually look he realized he was by an entirely different castle, this one built mainly of bluish black stone. It was much easier to look at than the last one. "Are castles the only thing here? Yeesh."

  
The grounds surrounding it were a mix of new greenery and death; it looked like the area had some rough times it was recovering from. He was sorely tempted to hook a tree or two to the Bloodleaf to boost them, but Slenderman didn't like it when he randomly extended his territory like that. Something about offsetting a balance. Jeff had landed behind the castle, so he headed left. The drawbridge was down and the gate open so he decided to peek in. Right away he noticed that the place was full of the dead. Skeletons served the table and a green-skinned woman in blue sat at the head of it. All of them talking and laughing.

  
On seeing this Jeff turned around, a bit awkwardly, and started to leave. Luck decided he should introduce himself and made him step on a old stick. The resulting snap echoed far too loudly in the great hall and he froze. He looked over his shoulder and found the entire gathering staring at him; the attention made his back squirm and, before he could stop it, a single tentacle slipped from his hoodie, sliding from the hem like a tail. He caught a faint growling just seconds before a blue scaled claw swiped just inches over his head. _'Of course there's a dragon here!'_

  
"Halt! Intruder!" He kept running.

  
He didn't hate dragons, no, that was reserved for the abusive adults of the world. What he was was scared. A dragon was bad enough, but a ghost dragon? He could at least lose a live one; how did you escape a ghost? He ran blindly, not seeing the stones collecting in front of him, or that the dragon had been stopped by an equally large creature that breathed cold. He saw none of this.

  
Jeff didn't stop until he stumbled over a root and tumbled head over heels to the base of an enormous flower. He sat up and saw the castle drifting off. This island was far more green; home to a sprawling field of flowers of all shapes and sizes. He looked up and saw the sky was still its mix of purple and green so he wasn't in the The Smiling Man's domain at least. He stood and wandered in. Out of the corner of his eye he caught nymphs darting past and tiny flower faeries peeking out between the blooms. In the distance he could see a forest rising high; he absently wondered what lived here.

  
He learned that one as he crested the hill. Standing in the center of a ring of dancing nymphs, resplendent in flowing silk scarves, was a tall statuesque figure with the head of a goat. Shaggy legs sporting cloven hooves stomped a devil's ring into the field, a bouquet of cowslips held in it's serpentine tail. The name was out of his mouth before he could think it. "Baphomet?"

  
The dance came to a halt. The nymphs giggled and gathered around him as faeries buzzed over his head. Baphomet stalked towards him, trying to scare him off. This quickly failed when the goatman realized they only had a foot or two on Jeff. Still, they glared at him and snorted just to keep up appearances. "So," they bleated, "You're the one who's been tramping all over the Rift then? I must admit I wasn't expecting one of your kind."

  
Jeff let out his breath in a whoosh. He had honestly thought they would have to fight. Jeff would gladly throw down with Slenderman any day, but you did not fight a creature like Baphomet; it was the absolute height of stupidity. "It kinda likes me, I guess."

  
That was greeted by roguish laughter. Baphomet sat down lotus style and patted the ground beside them. Not one to refuse an invitation from an entity like that, Jeff sat down and tucked his legs close to his chest. "I recognize a lot of the Rift but I don't come here too often. I saw a ghost dragon earlier."

  
"That doesn't surprise me. This particular piece is called the Ghost Zone, and yes, it was where the spirits of the dead often end up. Tell me Watcher child; do you know the nature of the Rift?"

  
_'It's called the Ghost Zone because it's full of ghosts. Sounds right.'_

  
"I don't know much 'cept that it's alive kinda. I'm guessin' it's more than just an expressway from all this."

  
Baphomet nodded. "The Rift is a living being of sorts. But more than that it is a collective; pieces that have fallen from dead, dying and newborn worlds settle in this place like stones in a barrel. Over time it gained an intelligence of its own, and began reaching out. Those places where it grips reality are the doors you use."

  
Jeff's eyes widened to the point his false one almost came out. "Wow. Well I respect it a lot more now. Um, not to be disrespectful or nothin' but this place kinda gives me a headache. Think you could help a guy out?"

  
"Of course, the living are not meant to be here long. Even those who are not human will feel it. Here you go, Jeffery."

  
The goatman winked at him and pointed over his shoulder. He heard an odd noise best described as 'vworp' and turned to find two trees spiraling together into an archway; just what he needed.

  
Jeff wasn't about to look a gift horse (or goat, in this case) in the mouth, and quickly skipped through the entrance provided. He came out of a tool shed behind someone's house and hopped the fence to see the same neighborhood he had originally left from. He scratched his head, but didn't question it; more focused on finding a place to bed down for the time being. He hoped BEN was having some luck with his request.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess it's kind of appropriate that chapter 13 has an actual demon in it.


	14. A Meeting with the Princess

The cry of "Intruder!" had echoed through the Zone; reaching Danny where he lay on Dipper's bed, watching him sort out his notes. He went stock still, ears trembling. As Dipper about to ask what was wrong, the endigo exploded into action; tearing open a portal and darting through before the words even left his mouth. The portal closed and Dipper jumped off the bed. He scratched his head and shrugged, returning to his work.

  
He missed the way his computer screen flickered.

  
 _'That was Dora's voice I'm sure of it.'_ Danny approached the castle in time to see one of Dora's claws swipe at someone. The person dodged it easily and started running. It was clear to him, even before he saw the person clearly, that they were simply in the wrong place at the wrong time; Dora hated having her celebrations interrupted. It didn't occur to him until later that, whoever that was, they were the same figure he had seen twice before. The very one he had asked Sam to look for.

  
Now he was more focused on making sure they got away safely. He landed with a heavy _**whump** _ just inches from Princess Dora's muzzle; forcing her to back off and swallow her flame. She growled at him and he returned it. They circled each other for several minutes; making false lunges and hissing. As Dora rounded for a tail lashing she glanced over her shoulder and saw Danny sitting smugly, his own tail waving happily. Her intruder had skipped the stones to Baphomet's field. "No longer your call, your majesty."

  
"Oh, poo."

  
She sat down, changing back as she did. Danny shrank down to her size and curled up around her, laying his head on her lap. "Why were you so gung ho about catching that person anyway?"

  
Dora sighed. "Lately it seems my subjects are losing their respect for me. I thought that by catching someone invading I might change their minds."

  
He patted her on the shoulder. "Maybe if they were actually intruding. It seems to me your subjects have just forgotten all things you've already done for, not just them, but the entire Zone. I think they just need a reminder."

  
"But if I keep mentioning the past-"

  
"Nothing will happen. The kingdom was stuck because your brother refused to let go of the past. You keep moving forward, and that's great! I'm not saying to do what he did. I just mean little reminders like," He thought for a second. It needed to be just right. Dora's kingdom was a delicate place. A true Fisher's kingdom that reacted to its ruler. The reminder would have to be big enough to stick with her subjects but small enough that it wouldn't affect the time of the kingdom.

  
Plus he wanted it to fit with the feel that was already present. What did nobles do when they wanted their deeds immortalized? "Portraits! Dora, would paintings affect the kingdom?"

  
She waved her hand, smiling. "Not at all! I actually have many pieces from different time periods."

  
Danny grinned hugely. "Perfect! Then let's find the style you like most and track the artist down. I'll pull some strings and get them to-"

  
"I want you to do it."

  
Danny halted his excited pacing. His tail held straight up in shock. "Why me? I'm no artist."

  
"Of course you are! I've seen your drawings after all."

  
He sat down again, gesturing as he spoke. "Well yeah, but those are just drawings. Self taught doodles. What I mean is I never learned to paint. I wouldn't be able to do it all justice." He flushed all the way to his ears. Dora tilted her head then laughed; politely hiding it behind her sleeve. She got up, brushing the dirt from her dress. Walking over, she gently took his hand and patted it.

  
"Then draw it. I'm sure the painter will be more than happy to work from a blueprint."

  
How had he not thought of that? He slapped his forehead, sighing heavily. He was so flustered by the princess' comment he hadn't thought of anything else. Dora, still holding his hand, lead him into the castle and up to her chambers. Danny shuffled along, not looking at anyone. He could feel them staring, not at him, but his crown. The hardly muffled whispers didn't help. Dora hurried them both along, casting a glare at her gossiping subjects.

  
Once in her chamber, Dora pushed Danny into a chair and let out a very unladylike squeal of joy. "This is so exciting! There was never any real decorations when my brother ruled. I've done my best to add some charm to the place, but it never seemed quite right. So what do you have in mind for the portraits."

  
"Um, well obviously you beating your brother since that's where it started. Your involvement in the Pariah thing too. Those are the major ones I can think of. Is there anything else you want, like a personal portrait?"

  
Dorathea nodded along until the personal portrait. "Oh no, no. That seems far too much like something my brother would have done. The other two are perfect for now. We can put them right next to each other in the main hall."

  
He nodded and Dora put an ear to the door. The sound of gossip had left so she took Danny's hand again and lead him to another room; she kept her favorite pieces of art in this one. Danny looked them over appreciatively. Dorathea's taste in art roamed widely, rarely staying in one particular style. She seemed to have a particular fixation with the gentle colors of Monet and the strange lines of Dali. Danny also noticed a copy (or perhaps the real version) of Bosch's 'Concert in an Egg'.

  
He quickly decided just how to make this work. Dali's surrealism would add just the right amount of energy to the fight with her bother, while the busyness of Bosch would make it easy to create an active scene for the Pariah piece. Lastly, Monet's use of color would draw the eye unobtrusively; a perfect fit for Dora's personality and ruling style. He gave her his ideas, watching the sparkle in her eye as he described the paintings. "What do you think, Your Highness?"

  
She laughed. "There's no need for titles between us, Danny. Besides, I know how uncomfortable that makes you. I think it's a wonderful idea."

  
"So when would you like it done?"

  
"There's no need to rush."

  
~*~

  
The two talked for a time, mostly about how Danny should visit more often. When he finally did leave, his internal clock was telling him he was exactly two hours late for his daily territory patrol. He slashed open a portal and hopped through, landing on the former Scuttlebutt island.

  
He picked up the change the instant he arrived. The scents of people, and one cat, mingled with the fog and the ever present musk of the beavers he shared the island with. One of the scents ticked something in his mind, but he couldn't place it. He took huge breaths, catching as much of the scent as he could. Yet every time he nearly had it it slipped his mind; as though the memory was actively trying to keep away. Still, he carefully filed away the other scents, just in case. If they were with the escapist scent he might be more likely to track the owner.

  
With that mystery tucked away he patrolled the island, secretly hoping to find more of the odd scent. No such luck. The beavers had finished their new stone house; they said that a kid and a cat had watched them for a bit. His nose told him that covered two of the scents. Most peculiarly, the boat that Pacifica and the town covens used to visit the island was gone. He had carried Pacifica back on her last trip so the boat should have still been there.

  
Whoever had come to the island had taken it as well. This was rapidly turning into a potential threat; especially since Danny couldn't find any signs of how they got here. As far as he could tell they dropped right out of the sky. Plus they brought that other scent with them. The strange one that made his spine tingle in the worst way; that made him scared.

  
The scent trail led over the water and he followed, finding the boat buried in some shrubs. He wrapped it in his tail and carried it back to the dock; tying it tight so it wouldn't drift. Then he continued following the trail. All the way to the Mystery Shack. He felt his hackles rise, an unpleasant buzz running down his spine. Who or what these scents belonged to, if they hurt anyone in his territory. . . it wasn't going to end well.

  
The Shack was closed for the day so no one reacted when he phased through the wall. Melody greeted him, Abuelita tutted about he dust he brought in, and Soos high-fived him. "You've been out for a while, dude. What's up?"

  
Danny gnawed at the soup bone Abuelita gave him, easing the stress that had snowballed him the second he got here. "Something's going on in Piedmont. Monsters have been popping up left and right there; they've even been in Mabel and Dipper's house."

  
He neatly cracked the bone and lapped up the marrow. "I knew it was going to happen; dream stuff, long story. So I rushed over to head it off. We've been keeping things under control since then. At least as much as we can since we don't have clue what's going on."

  
Soos stuffed a handful of chips in his mouth. "Crazy dude. You know we had some weird guys come in here earlier. Wanted to know about Weirdmaggedon. They weren't government guys, I checked. The little stuttery dude said they were legend trippers."

  
That was odd. "Even the most dedicated legend tripper knows bugger all about that. How the heck did they know? Do you remember what they looked like?"

  
Through a mouthful of chips Soos sputtered. "Yep. There was a lady; kinda tall, real skinny. She had a cat with her. Then there was a younger dude, looked real tired and had a bandage on his face and these bright yellow goggles on his neck. I think that was it."

  
Danny frowned. He'd smelled three people, he was sure of it. "Are you sure that was all?"

  
"There was someone else." Melody chimed in. "I can't remember much. Just that he was very tall, pale; I think he was albino, and. . . and that's it. Sorry, Danny, I'm trying. But when I try to remember him it just,"

  
"Slips your mind?" He finished. "Same thing happened to me when I tried to track their scents. I could almost picture it and then I lost it. This guy can hide from the perception of others."

  
"Like you do?" Soos asked.

  
Danny shook his head. "This is on a whole other level. I can get people to ignore me but they still remember they saw me. This guy just slides under the radar completely."

  
Suddenly a thought came to Melody and she piped up. "I remembered something! The tall guy was wearing a white hoodie!"

  
Danny's eyes widened. It wasn't a coincidence. Just like that it all connected for him. The pale spot in the Ghost Zone, the one Dora had chased, the person he described to Sam. They were one and the same; they had to be the owner of the scent.

  
As he thought this a buzzing came from his cloak. He jumped, not expecting it, but recovered and took out the Dalv co phone from Sam. He answered and the screen showed Sam, slightly flustered and very concerned. "So I looked around, and there's two people who would match what you described. The first is The Chaser; close but they're not albino the second one is Jeff the Killer. I ignored that one too at first because he's not albino either. But then Tucker got this file from a group we've been working with. The description matches what you told me and, get this, the guy in the file. Jeff Woods. That's what people say his real name is."

  
Danny felt that tingling start in his neck. If the person he was seeing and the one who came here were the same person. . . What if this Jeff guy was the Cheshire Butcher? And just what did that make him? He was clearly more than just a killer; what kind of powers did he have?

  
Before he could follow that chain further he got the urgent need to go back to Dipper, and fast. He was gone before the soup bone hit the floor. 


	15. The Virus and the Masked Man

Halloween was drawing closer, and the entire town was alive with it. Except the Pines' house. Oh, the house was decorated; pumpkins carved and ready, little bats hanging from the eaves. If someone looked closer, however, they would spot tiny charms scattered around; evidence of the twins' efforts. More and more strange things were starting to happen in Piedmont, most of it seemed harmless, but an alarming amount of the dangerous stuff was centered on them.

  
In the time since receiving their ally's mark the house had become a hotbed for monster activity. Much of it consisted of small, easily intimidated things like that furby knock-off Mr. Widemouth; all he'd needed was solid whack with a golf club and he was done. He was still pretty nasty though, what with all his dangerous games. The worst of them had been the person in Mabel's closet. They didn't do anything, just watched through cracked doors. But that pale face and empty eyes had betrayed the inhuman nature of the figure. That one seemed content to just watch. It didn't make it any less creepy though; especially when it didn't stay in Mabel's closet.

  
All of this could be easily dealt with if Danny were here. But the endigo was likely still dealing with Princess Dora's trouble, leaving the twins to deal with the apparent invasion themselves.

  
How their parents had missed all this was both a mystery and a miracle. They somehow even managed to miss the giant horse-man thing that went stampeding down the street one day. Everyone on their street caught a 24 hour bug afterwards but nothing else happened.

  
A day of quiet after all that was abruptly ended when Dipper's computer started acting up. It started small; the wireless mouse would disconnect randomly, programs crashed and others started up. He'd run nearly every virus scan under the sun, and not one of them found a thing. It had gotten to the point where he posted a hiatus notice on his site and just gave up on it for time.

  
That didn't help of course; it just got worse. The computer started booting up in the middle of the night and printing out page after page of nonsense. Finally it occurred to him that this wasn't a natural glitch. With that in mind he opened the program Ford had sent him after the elder Pines learned about such things. It was a sort of digital exorcist; designed to run specially crafted spells through the system as a sort of mystical defrag.

  
When the program was halfway done his browser popped up; a chatbot open on the page. Five words sent a chill down his spine worse than any cold Danny could summon.

  
"You shouldn't have done that."

  
The entire screen went black for a few seconds, then went back to his desktop. Standing in the center was a small figure. It took him a second to recognize it as the statue from Majora's Mask, and once he did he realized the trouble he was in.

  
After Danny had explained The Rake's origin, Dipper started paying more attention both to what he had thought were troll threads on his site, and to the stories that popped up. He went through the entire must read section on the Creepypasta wiki (as well as a few others that caught his attention). So he knew who this was.

  
"Ben?" He asked shakily. As someone who relied heavily on computers, BEN DROWNED had been one of the stories that really scared him. Now it was happening to him, and he'd already pissed it off. The figure glitched slightly. Now it was no longer the statue but Link. Just as the stories and art showed; his eyes were dripping something black, red pupils glared at him with a sinister grin.

  
Just as quickly as all that happened his computer shut down and a pale hand reached out. Dipper yelped and scrambled away, leaping for cover behind his bed. He watched from his hiding place as BEN pulled himself from the monitor. Unlike the original version, BEN's clothing was in shades of gray, just a few shades darker than his skin. Beyond that he still looked like Link.

  
BEN looked over the room, paying close attention to the still broken closet. Eventually his gaze fell on Dipper's hiding place. The air buzzed and the virus was standing next to him. He squeaked. "Dude, chill. I've had my fun. It wasn't like I was torturing you."

  
Dipper cleared his throat. "You _have_ been torturing me."

  
BEN crossed his arms in an X and shook his head. "No, no, I mean physically. I was just messing with you, then. It's what I do, y'know?"

  
He was skeptical, but monsters often had different ideas on such things so he let it slide. "I guess that's alright then." He said slowly. "As long as you didn't break anything."

  
BEN gave the affirmative. "It's all fine. If I broke something I'll fix it when I leave."

  
Dipper sighed in relief. This monster wasn't out to hurt anyone, at least right now. Then it occurred to him. "So why pick here? Practically every house on the block has a computer. We weren't a random pick, I can tell. So spill."

  
"Alright fine. A friend asked me to keep an eye on the place. There's a lot of monsters out there, if you haven't noticed, and my friend has reason to think they might be after you."

  
Dipper gripped the horn around his neck. BEN followed the hand down to it. He could feel a faint energy and spotted a hole on it. He glitched to Dipper again, crouched in front of his face this time, And grabbed the horn off him; examining it. Dipper squawked and tried to take it back, only for BEN to vanish.

  
He reappeared atop the bookshelf with the horn dangling in his hand. He seemed absolutely fascinated with it. He saw the hole and peeked through, giving an impressed whistle. "This thing's impressive! You can see all kinds of little crawlies with this! Where'd you find it?"

  
Back on the floor, Dipper paced. Not feeling the horn against his chest was making him nervous. Sure he had had the though that maybe he HAD drawn attention by using it; especially when Danny had warned him of that exact thing. Now Danny was gone, and the horn wasn't with him.

  
"From a friend." If this guy wasn't going to say who sent him, then Dipper wasn't going to give a straight answer. BEN understood. He shrugged and jumped down, giving the horn back as he did. Dipper swiftly put back on, sighing as he felt the tingle of energy again.

  
BEN tapped his chin, thinking. "You know. . . I'm no mind reader but I can tell you think that thing's responsible for this. I can tell you right now that's not true. I don't know all the details, because my friend's running on theories right now, but I do know something big is happening. And like it or not for some reason it's centering on you. For now at least."

  
That didn't help at all. But at least he knew someone was on their side for now. They had enough stuff around to help them hold out against whatever might try it's luck next. He just wish he knew how long Danny would be gone. It was Dora so it was safe to say he'd be gone for the rest of the day, at least. And what about the guy who sent BEN?

  
While Dipper was suffering a crisis, BEN took the chance to explore the rest of the house; popping in and out of existence as he went. When Dipper saw he was gone he squeaked and chased after him. _'Please let him stay out of sight.'_

  
Thankfully, someone was listening, because he found BEN in Mabel's room; head in the closet, phased through the closed door, sniffing. Mabel looked at him and nodded towards the virus in question. Dipper smiled briefly and mouthed. "He's on our side."

  
With a gasp of air BEN yanked his head out. "Stinks like cigarettes in there. Masky must have stopped by."

  
"Wait, is that who's been staring at me? He's creepy!" Mabel said, wrapping her sleeves around herself.

  
"He's harmless. Bad habits, but harmless."

  
Mabel looked at him skeptically but let the matter drop; Dipper had other plans, however. "We've been handling all the monsters just fine up until now. Why would this friend of yours send anyone?"

  
BEN glitched over to Mabel's bed, sitting down and kicking his feet. Now that Dipper wasn't freaking out over this guy he could see that he was quite young; probably no more than eleven or twelve when he died. "Cause if he's right, it's gonna get a lot worse."

  
~*~

  
As night fell, Mabel and Dipper did their rounds; lighting candles and making sure the right charms were active. Dipper was pretty sure he wasn't going to sleep tonight. BEN had more or less taken over his computer; part of his job required him to keep an eye on Dipper's website. Apparently that had been what cued his friend in to the rise in activity. His videos had been what caused him to worry. Dipper had explained that where he had filmed those, Gravity Falls, already had plenty of ways of dealing with weirdness like that.

  
All of this had been typed up and sent off to BEN's mysterious friend. The only thing Dipper had learned was that they were the same person who sent them the messages and the sigil. So at least they had that going for them. BEN still wouldn't utter a word on their identity, however, only claiming they were very busy and had to keep moving. Dipper clung to the theory that it was the Cheshire Butcher; even though he couldn't figure out how to make them connect.

  
Meanwhile, Mabel was awake as well. She watched her closet like a hawk; waiting for this Masky to show up. She wanted to know for herself what he was like. As for what she would do when she saw him, well, she would figure that out.

  
She woke up at three am to the scent of cigarette smoke. She wondered how she hadn't noticed it before, and for that matter, how mom and dad hadn't smelled it. Carefully keeping her eyes slightly open, Mabel rolled over to face the closet. There he was. Just like always that pale face was peeping out at her. Tonight it was tilted back slightly; she could see the glow of a lit cigarette hanging below it. "You know that's bad for you right?"

  
The glow snuffed out quickly, the owner startled by her remark. She laughed quietly. "No use hiding. I already saw you, Masky."

  
She heard a frustrated groan and the face, which she now knew was just a mask, flipped up completely. From her closet came a man in a tan jacket, cigarette dangling from leather gloved fingers. He was a little on the short side, brown hair and dark eyes. All in all someone she could definitely see herself dating when all this craziness was over. Or at least she would, but she got the distinct feeling he was taken.

  
Masky mashed the remains of the cigarette against his palm and tucked both in his pocket, possibly to throw away later. Mabel reached over to turn on her bed lamp, not catching the faint look of panic on her guest's face. The light clicked on, throwing a soft glow over the walls. "That's better. Now let's. . . talk?"

  
In the time between the light coming on and her turning around Masky seemed to have disappeared. She looked her room over and even checked back in the closet, but he was just gone. Then she felt a faint breeze and found her window open. The smell of cigarette smoke trailed through. She huffed and put her hands on her hips. "Or I can wait until you're less shy."


	16. Cracks Spreading

Much to Dipper's chagrin, BEN had joined them for breakfast the nest morning. Since it was the weekend Dipper was even more worried about the ghost virus being spotted. Yet once again, his parents were either ignoring him or just that blind. After many curious looks BEN broke down and explained that most residents in the Under-realm (at least those that went above regularly) learned or were given a glamour to disquise themselves. Most of those who had one were the ones who couldn't look human enough on their own, like him. BEN's just made him invisible to people when he wasn't interacting with technology.

  
Glamours didn't work on people with second sight; something that naturally developed in people who were regularly exposed to the supernatural. People could be born with them but it was more natural to gain one. Since Masky kept his face covered he didn't need one at all; he was human enough underneath. "So about him." Mabel said through a mouthful of cereal. "Why'd he run off when I tried to talk to him? I mean he must know you're here too."

  
BEN's form glitched and went to static. It was strange to see a person shaped static in the air, but Dipper put it out of his mind for now. He would freak out once all this was over. Eventually he faded back in. "Sorry, got a message. Anyway, Masky's skittish. His boss mostly sends him out for info gathering; stuff you have to stay hidden for. He's been doing it for years so he probably just bolted on instinct."

  
"Oh." Mabel said, sadly pushing the soggy remnants of some fruity cereal around the bowl. BEN frowned, ears drooping.

  
"Well if you want him to stick around I'd leave him a snack. Lurking is hungry work after all."

  
She immediately perked up, nearly leaping out of her chair to grab the virus. "Really?! What does he like?"

  
BEN carefully extracted himself from her grip and drifted towards the ceiling, firmly out of reach. "Coffee mostly. He's not much for sweets. Since he travels a lot he'd probably appreciate something homemade, instead of the gas station food he usually gets." BEN gagged at the thought.

  
"Does he like cake?"

  
"Anything but cheesecake. Can't stand the taste of it."

  
Mabel nodded and took off to put something together. She'd get him to stay for sure tonight.

  
~*~

  
That night Mabel made sure to keep the light off. If she had to talk to him in the dark then she would. She set the slice of black forest cake in front of the door and left it cracked. Mabel figured it was a bit like trying to get a stray's attention; gain their trust with food, then take care of them. Or at least make friends. She doubted Masky would consent to any sort of concern for him.

  
With that in mind she dressed for bed and snuggled under the covers. It would be harder to tell when he arrived in the dark, but she knew he would. And she was right. Just like before, she woke right at three to the sound of someone trying to quietly scarf down some cake. She opened her eyes and there he was, mask tossed aside as he tucked in like a starving man at a feast. He stopped when he realized she was watching, tensing up to run. She smiled. "There's more downstairs in the fridge."

  
She went back to sleep to the sound of Masky heading downstairs for the promised cake. The next morning she found he hadn't left this time. He was curled up in her closet, presumably sleeping off the cake as she found half of it gone when she checked. She put a blanket and one of her pillows in there and closed the door quietly. She had to suppress a giggle when she heard him wake up just enough to get more comfy with them before sleeping some more.

  
With him comfortable Mabel went downstairs to clean up and see what her brother was up to for the day. Both of them were waiting for a new lead on this brand of weird. BEN was doing what he could to help, but his powers were weak in the real world, reduced to little more than messing with the electricity and some pyrokinetics; the most he could really do was give information, and that he had little of. Dipper had tried repeatedly to get more answers; either on what was happening or who sent him, but no matter how he worded it he got nothing. Apparently BEN really didn't know what was going on, and he had sworn silence on his friend's identity until they saw fit to show up themselves. If Dipper wanted answers he'd just have to wait.

  
Otherwise, the virus mostly followed them around the house as they did their, now routine, checks on the various bits and bobs used to keep the rabble out. While Dipper reinforced the ones that were fading, Mabel headed to the backyard armed with a golf club to rattle the bushes for anything. BEN went with, curious about it.

  
"So why do you do this bit? The spells I get but what does shaking the shrubbery accomplish?"

  
Mabel jammed the club in and shook it around, scaring out nothing but a few small birds. "That Rake thing was chased out here before it disappeared. I'm mostly just checking it hasn't come back; even though your guy said he took care of it."

  
This made sense. "There is more than one Rake so that's possible. Still, are you sure a golf club would be enough? I mean, a Rake did manage to get the better of Jeff once."

  
Mabel smiled. "This thing's enchanted to handle the worst of it. I once beat a bridge troll unconscious." The rest of his sentence registered. "And who's Jeff?"

  
BEN clapped his hands over his mouth, flushing to his ears (given that he bled black this created a rather strange effect). He chuckled nervously and tried to wave it off. "Just another friend I know. We hang out a lot and he's always getting into fights. He, uh, got drunk and thought he could take one. Turned out he could. Heh heh, oh boy."

  
Mabel didn't respond, just shrugged his behavior off and went back to rattling bushes. On about the fourth or fifth go at it, she knocked something loose. Both she and BEN stared as a cloaked figure leaped from the bush, startled by the sudden poke in the rear. The figure raised its claws, showing Mabel that it's cloak was apparently its body as well, and took a step forwards before seeing BEN. It started to panic, arms flapping. The whole thing was rather comical.

  
"Oh no, oh no. No one said you'd be here! Oh, what do I do?"

  
BEN grinned wickedly. Glitching out of sight, he reappeared behind the panicking figure, grabbed his hood and pulled his head(?) back until it could see him smiling. **_"RUN."_**

  
It screamed and did just that; fleeing through the shadows of the fence. BEN fell to the ground in a fit of laughter. Mabel, quickly seeing the ridiculousness of the whole thing, joined him. When they finally calmed down she asked. "So who was that?"

  
BEN gasped and got up, wiping an inky tear from his eye. "Shadow Lurker. He's supposed to be threatening, and I guess he can be, but he's usually such a big bag of nerves that it's hard to take him seriously. Still though. The fact he was here at all is a problem."

  
"Something you'll be telling your friend about?"

  
"I'll have to. This is a huge deal."

  
He left Mabel to finish her round, clipping through to Dipper's room. He jumped in the computer and hastily sent a message, hoping Jeff would be somewhere he would see it. He spent the rest of the day waiting for him to respond, but nothing came. He sighed and stayed in the computer, watching Dipper go through his night routine. He politely dimmed the screen and kept an eye on the doors, as he had begun doing.

  
With Dipper asleep he opened the website and did his daily scan. He found nothing of note. It seemed that in Dipper's absence users had taken to trolling the forums; the other site mods were having a hell of a time shutting them down. _'I'll have to let him know so he can get on that.'_

  
He popped into the inbox next. Most of it was just alerts about bots on the site being shut down. A couple were from an IP he couldn't track for someone named Mason. He opened one curiously and found it had a very concerning picture attached. It was taken someplace cold, judging from the icebergs, but he couldn't tell where. The worrying bit was the thing breaching the water. It was thankfully hidden by the massive wave it created, so whoever took the picture didn't see all of it. But he could see enough to know what it was.

  
BEN felt a panic well up inside him. Only one creature looked like that; made anyone feel like that. Jeff's pet monster. _'The last time I heard of that thing the foundation had it. Was it not contained after all?'_

  
Panic growing, he scanned the email. There was no detail on the thing, thank goodness. The photographer only saw enough to call it a sea monster, and that was it. He looked through the others from the same person, just in case, then deleted all the ones that weren't important. BEN cleared out the trash folder as well. With a sigh he exited the computer and sat on the bookshelf to try and relax. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm thinking of writing a side story for Jeff. Just a way to make some connections with things mentioned here. Especially his "little" pet in this chapter.


	17. Giving up the Ghost

Around midnight, he heard something. A quiet shuffling from Mabel's room. He left Dipper sleeping to go check it out. He choked on a laugh when he peeked in and saw her light on. Masky was laying full length on the floor, a late night coffee and a slice of cake sitting by the wayside as he let her put sparkling green nail polish on. He listened as Mabel gossiped to him about anything and everything.

  
BEN snickered and left. At first he wanted to head back to the computer to see if Jeff had responded while he was gone, but as he drifted down the hall he heard something whimper outside. Clipping outside he saw something huge in the backyard; a young strider pinned under it. The strider snapped and hissed at the beast, failing horribly at intimidating it. Out of fear for the young creature's life, BEN let off a burst of white noise. The sound startled the thing into releasing its prey, and the strider took its chance to run for freedom.

  
With the strider out of harm's way the beast whirled on him, half frozen drool dripping from its maw. BEN tried to move out of reach only to see its eyes flash pure white, giving him a glimpse of the strange smoke that billowed from them, and lunge. Blackened claws snagged his tunic and pulled him to the ground. He gave a yelp of pain and screwed his eyes shut.

  
Inside, Mabel and Masky heard the sound. Mabel ran to the window and gasped, only just seeing poor BEN pinned down. "Danny! Leave him alone!" She hollered.

  
The pressure left and BEN looked up to see Mabel yelling at the creature. Masky peeked out the window and spotted him; a quick buzz in his head and he was being lifted by the proxy. "Who knew green was your color, Tim-tam?" he mumbled dizzily before losing consciousness.

  
Masky brought the virus inside while Mabel told the newcomer off. The noise woke Dipper who looked to see Masky carrying BEN over his shoulder. He was instantly off the bed and pulling out a first aid kit from under it. Masky just shook his head. "He isn't injured; just passed out."

  
Dipper was a bit surprised by the tone of voice; it wasn't what he expected from the man's rough appearance. Either way he set the kit aside and helped him get BEN to his bed. After telling Masky to stay with him, Dipper went down to diffuse the situation. Outside, he found Danny sitting on his haunches; ears down and wings curled over his head as Mabel kept scolding him. He cupped his hands around his mouth. "Mabel! Give it a rest!"

  
She froze and Danny perked up, shrinking down and curling around Dipper; purring happily. Dipper patted him. "I missed you too."

  
He looked up at Mabel. "I know things are stressful but don't take it out on him. Danny was just doing what he does, you know that."

  
She sighed and rested her chin on the windowsill. "I'm sorry, Danny. It's been really crazy lately, and it's going to get crazier apparently."

  
Danny jumped to the window and crowded in, snagging Mabel by the collar and carrying her to bed. He nuzzled her cheek and she hugged him. "We'll worry about that in the morning. For now I'm home."

  
Mabel gave a sleepy grin and didn't fight when Danny pulled the covers up. He set one of her stuffed toys, a pig she stitched wings to, and sat nearby until he could hear her breathing settle. Then he went to Dipper's room. A rather peculiar scene met him. The boy he'd gone after was at the end of the bed; awake and eyeing him critically. He dipped his head, keeping his posture low and purring gently. Danny slinked his way to the bed and stayed low.

  
BEN could tell from that alone that he was sorry and leaned over to pet him. The effect was immediate; Danny perked up and the room became a little cooler. Dipper explained just who he was and why he'd attacked. With all the crazy things happening in their neighborhood, Danny was on full alert; even more than usual. It all made sense to him, and maybe it was a good thing. Still he made a point to let Danny know what he'd attacked was a harmless herbivore.

  
While the two ghosts got to know each other, Dipper took the chance to check his computer himself. There was the seasonal complaints from mods about the rise in troll threads, he went through and deleted those and sent a stern warning to the perpetrators. A few were from Grunkle Ford; updates on his own investigations. Beyond that it was business as usual. He went back to his site to check on the real threads and found many, many more in the sightings. People were seeing all kinds of things. Things far beyond his experience.

  
Too many of them read like a last will; people turning to him as a final resort before something took them. Strangers without heads or faces, monsters in the walls, voices in their heads, children made of wood or ice. Dipper's stomach roiled as he read through them all, offered help where he could. He saw a huge rise in the mark from people calling for protection.

  
He saw one last picture before he had to leave for the sake of his nerves. A knight, clad in black armor, surrounded by an all too familiar glow. Whoever took it said they saw a taller figure, with a green beard, behind it. The thread was long dead. He reached for the power button, too unnerved to leave the computer on despite the fact he was cutting BEN's escape routes. As he did he heard a ping. He jumped so hard he fell from the chair, only Danny's reflexes kept him from hitting his head on the floor.

  
Dipper had opened the message as he fell. But what he saw sent a cold spike right to his heart.

 

>   
>  RE: Shadow lurker, more monsters.  
>  The barrier is breaking. Zalgo may make a move.

  
Feeling him tremble, Danny pulled him away from the computer and onto his bed, curling around him at the very end of it. BEN watched them then jumped in the computer to see the message himself. He too went cold. This was big. It was bigger than he thought it was. If the barrier fell then there was no way to stop the two worlds from colliding. If Zalgo was using this as his chance then everything was done for. He left the computer to find Danny watching him with a predatory glare, tail flicking. Dipper was tucked against his chest; watching too.

  
BEN had the distinct feeling he was about to give it all away. That feeling was confirmed by Danny's words.  
"So this friend who sent you. It was Jeff, right? Jeff Woods; tall, wide in the hips, albino?"

  
BEN only nodded. Danny continued. "And Jeff is the Cheshire Butcher?"

  
Another nod.

  
"How many of you are involved in this? And just what is happening?"

  
He looked at the floor, silently debating. Dipper's door creaked and Masky walked in, looked over the situation, then stood by BEN. With Masky by his side he felt brave enough to talk. So he took a breath and told the whole story. At least as far as he understood it.

  
~*~

  
If Dipper hadn't spent most of his time dealing with the unnatural he probably would have lost his mind listening to the story. Instead he just felt dread. Just like Jeff had said, the monsters in the stories were real; nearly every creature could and would kill a human if given a chance. If the barrier was destroyed humans wouldn't stand a chance. And worse still, unlike Weirdmaggedon, this was spreading to a global scale. This Jeff guy, who apparently could travel through a sentient dimensional bridge, was trying to find the core of it before that happened. And then there was Jeff himself.

  
"So let me see if I've got this." Dipper said as paced. Masky and BEN watched him, feeling tired just from that. "So Jeff isn't just a serial killer with supernatural beliefs; he's actually not human?"

  
BEN nodded.

  
"And none of you know what he is beyond some sort of manifestation of humanity's fears."

  
BEN made a so so gesture while Masky shrugged. "Well, it's not all of humanity's fears, that's just too OP. He's only the fear of the abnormal and occult. . . they intersect a lot."

  
Dipper stopped pacing. "Okay so fear of the abnormal. What's that entail?"

  
Masky covered BEN's mouth when he took a deep breath. "We have a lot of theories. None of them really hold any water because of the nature of abnormal itself."

  
Dipper raised a brow, looking for more. Masky sighed. "Well if we lived in the right time I could've have just said it meant the sort of thing you'd see in freak shows or read in an almanac; babies with deformities, unpredictable weather, people and animals dying from unknown causes. But now it could be that and more."

  
"And what does that make you guys? Creepypastas?"

  
"Simple. We come from lots of places, and from all over the world. Some started as humans, and others are creatures that have always existed; faeries, spirits, demons, and the like. People encounter us and write stories to explain what they saw or where we came from. Most fail miserably, especially when it comes to Jeff."

  
Masky gagged. BEN laughed. "Yeah, Jeff's are pretty bad. Fears, on the other hand, come from humans themselves. Everyone has fears, and those fears enter the collective unconscious. Eventually the strongest take a physical form; some even take more than one."

  
"Since there's more than one way to experience a fear." Masky added. "Jeff is technically a fear of the unknown. Abnormality is just how that fear manifests for him."

  
Dipper stopped pacing. "So it could basically be anything? That seems a little much."

  
Both nodded. Masky continued. "Well not anything. We've narrowed it down to animals, people or experiences. Which, okay yeah that's a lot of things."

  
"And you two still don't think that's right."

  
"Jeff's the only one who knows for sure, and he's not going to tell." BEN shrugged.

  
Dipper had one more question for the both of them. "Do you guys have any other friends? We could use the backup."

  
They agreed to do what they could to get help. But without Jeff's confirmation there wasn't much that could be done. Slenderman wasn't the type to make any risky moves. Especially when his proxies were involved. The rest of the night was spent with BEN and Masky taking turns to explain the concepts of their world as well as they could. Dipper wrote it all down, utterly fascinated.


	18. The Woman in Black

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> welcome to another round of 'spellcheck has a heartattack' with me your host!

The body was so damaged she almost didn't recognize his work, but she still knew it was him. She had long since acquainted herself with every nick and slice of his "art". What she couldn't deduce was where he was heading next. This kill was so far away from the last it had destroyed any pattern he'd established. But he had to be close by. She knew he would wait until the death was reported before moving on. If that didn't happen he would come back and move the body to make it easier to find. She had until then to recover the trail. She could wait.

  
"And if I can't find him I'll bring him to me."

  
She knew he would protect kids. She knew he could find them. So she just needed the right bait. She giggled softly. "Don't got to sleep, Jeff."

  
A mad, awful laugh escaped the blackened lips of her porcelain mask.

  
~*~

  
Mabel woke up the next morning full of excitement. She finally got the chance to talk to Masky the night before; he even let her paint his nails! Now maybe he would help them. He seemed like a tough guy. Plus, tomorrow was Halloween!

  
"Oh my gosh, I haven't done any work on my costume!"

  
She leapt out of bed, grabbing her boxes of fabric from underneath, and ran down to the sewing room to get started. She didn't even notice the gathering in the kitchen. Only Danny turned to look as she ran past, but he chose not to follow when he saw the things she carried. He didn't fancy being used as a mannequin again.

  
A nervous cough brought him back to the conversation at hand. BEN had shared the contents of his messages to Jeff with them; as well as what exactly his mission had been. As for Jeff, they had no way of finding him. With so many people using his sigil he was probably all over the place. He likely wouldn't respond to it unless they found some way to make their casting stand out over the others. So until they could do that they had to wait. Jeff had marked the house as high priority so he would show up eventually. Hopefully before anything dangerous happened.

  
In the meantime, BEN and Masky had agreed to return to the Under-realm to see if they could bring anyone else with them for extra muscle. Masky had warned them that he likely wouldn't be allowed to take any of the proxies, and that Slender might keep him there when he went back. But there were others in the manor that were just living there; not official proxies, and he could probably get them to come up.

  
Not quite trusting the two of them, Danny insisted on seeing them off; Dipper wanted to go as well. Mabel was too busy putting costumes together to go, however so Dipper changed his mind, not wanting to leave the house with her focused on other things. Danny promised to give him all the details anyway, leaving him free to add on to the defenses while occasionally giving his opinion on costumes.

  
BEN and Masky couldn't travel like Jeff could; having to use specially designed gates. Luckily, there was one fairly close by, ensuring Danny wouldn't have to go too far from the twins. He trotted close behind the pair, side-eyeing anything that looked the slightest bit off. "So what exactly is this Rift thing you talked about? It sounds familiar."

  
Masky took out a cigarette and lit it, not quite needing it but just for something to do with his hands. "The Rift is what connects the Rabbit Holes, doors that open randomly to this world. Jeff's either really good at finding them or he can make them, we don't know. As for the Rift, it's practically madness incarnate. I went through it with Jeff once, and I never want to do it again. Every door you go through changes everything around you. One second we were in a colonial village the next it looked like we'd walked into a discotheque on acid."

  
That sounded like his dream. Only now he wasn't quite so sure it was just a dream. "Is it possible to end up there on accident?" He had his suspicions.

  
"Ever hear of people disappearing without a trace; even right in front of someone? Most of the time it's the Rift. The thing tends to hook to doors that already exist so you absolutely could wind up there without knowing it. Why?"

  
Danny's tail flicked uneasily. He didn't remember much of the not-dream, just the room of centipedes and the voice of the person who carried him out. "I think I wound up there once. I didn't like where I ended up but the boombox things were cool. Someone carried me out, cussed me out too. I'm going to assume that was Jeff."

  
BEN lit up at the mention of the boombox. "You saw the Wub-beasts?! Those things are awesome! But yeah, if they were swearing it was probably Jeff. He cusses like it's a second language sometimes. Usually he just leaves people in there though, why would he help?"

  
The sound of clicking legs rose in his mind and he shivered violently. "I don't know I was in a room of my worst nightmare and on the verge of a panic attack? Let's drop it."

  
The tremble in his voice was enough for BEN to stop. Bad experiences were common in the Rift, it was how it got its reputation.

  
Back at the house, technically across the street. A pale woman in a tight-fitting black dress watched the odd trio leave the house. She heard them mention Jeff and reached into her bag for a pair of binoculars. Tucked deep in the hedge she searched the windows of the house. Finding nothing, she furtively crossed the road and hopped a neighbor's fence. From here she could see into the back of the house. In one room, clearly designed for crafts of some sort, she spotted a young teen at a sewing machine. Behind her, looking rather put out under a mountain of fabrics, was clearly her brother.

  
Jeff was keeping an eye on these two for some reason; even going so far as to steal a proxy to watch them. They'd be the perfect bait. Now, how to get them out? Well they were already used to seeing strange people. So she would try her luck playing as an ally. If things went south she knew how to handle the glitch and the masked one, but that ghost thing was another story. If she wanted to make her trap she'd have to act before it came back.

  
She straightened up her face and made her way to the back door where she knew they'd hear her. Knocking loudly brought the brother to the door. He threw it open and blinked at her. She didn't even have to say a word. "Wow, that was fast. Did BEN and Masky ask you to come?"

  
She held in a nasty laugh. "Of course, why else would I be here? Now, may I come in?"

  
"Oh right, yeah!" The boy stepped out of the doorway and let her pass. She followed him through the house, checking every open door for anyone who might stop her. Stopping just outside the sewing room, she let him go ahead, grabbing a smoke grenade from her bag. As the brother got his sister's attention and they turned to look, she popped the grenade and let fly, slipping a filter under her mask to avoid the gas' effects.

  
"I was going to use this on that bastard Jeff, but I'm glad I got the chance to test it first." She snarked. The brother caught his sister as she fell and managed a final gasp before fainting. "Danny. . . help."

  
With a victorious laugh she scooped the twins up, one under each arm, and quickly made her way to her choice of hideout. It was an abandoned housing complex of some sort, long forgotten by the average people. Most of the floors had collapsed from lack of care, leaving a clear shot to the underground storage and maintenance area; a winding mass of tunnels that she learned like the back of her hand.

  
It would be perfect for their little showdown.

  
~*~

  
The house was quiet when Danny returned. His hackles rose instinctively. An unfamiliar scent lingered near Mabel's craft room; a heady perfume that just barely masked the smell of hellfire. A low growl rumbled in his chest. This was the very thing he had feared. He shouldered open the door and reeled back from the chemical smell. He felt a little woozy from it. Danny quickly vacated the room and went outside to clear his head.

  
Outside the scent disappeared, but there was no trace of the smell that he now knew was a Rabbit Hole. Feeling his core thump hard he struggled to find any trace of the kidnapper. After pacing the yard and street for over an hour he slumped in defeat on the other side. His wings fluttered sadly. Suddenly he heard the crunch of footsteps on dead leaves. He looked to see a pair of what looked like spikes in front of him, the lower parts painted a bright, glittery pink. The absurdity of it forced a dry, sad laugh out of him.

  
"You again? Ya live here or somethin'?" That was a voice he recognized. He sat up and found himself staring at a pair of pinkish red eyes, glaring at him.

  
"For a definition of living, yes. I don't know why you chose to show up now Jeff, but someone took Mabel and Dipper and I need to find them."

  
This caught him off guard. Then he rolled his eyes. "BEN spilled. I might know who took 'em, but ya gotta give me a second to look around."

  
Danny rounded on him, growling and eyes flashing. "No! I have to find them NOW!"

  
Jeff snarled right back. Danny disregarded it and leapt in the air, ready to search, when a dozen black tendrils snapped around him. He was brought down and held just above the ground. Danny growled and struggled, pumping the tendrils with as much ice as he could. Even though he could hear the things freeze they still didn't let go. Jeff chuckled. "I've been in colder places than that. Seriously though, if ya wanna find your kids then give me a fuckin' second."

  
He didn't wait for an answer, instead keeping Danny wrapped up while he scoured the dirt around them. Danny tried to gnaw on a tendril that got close to his mouth but quickly gave up to watch Jeff. He certainly seemed to know what he was doing. "So. . . you know who did this?"

  
Jeff traced the edge of a faint print, rubbing the dust off on his hoodie. "Yeah, it's gotta be that bitch Jane. She's had it out for me since I offed her folks."

  
Danny's eyes widened. "Well maybe she's justified then."

  
The tendrils around him unwrapped, letting him fall. Jeff scoffed. "She ain't. As much as she tries to play the victim, she asked for it to happen."

  
Rubbing his now sore arms (how had the tendrils actually hurt him?) Danny blinked. "What do you mean? Are you talking about that sigil of yours?"

  
Jeff nodded. He waited for Danny to get his feet under him before motioning for him to follow. Danny blinked at seeing the way his feet actually were long spikes. "I fell for a snotty, spoiled little shit's attempt to scare her parents into givin' her what she wanted. I couldn't recognize the intent of the thing then; just what the person drawin' it was feelin'. She felt angry. I assumed she was a victim. So I did what I do. Rather than accept her role in it, the bitch blamed their deaths entirely on me. Went crazy from it and swore revenge."

  
Danny tensed, tail flicking angrily. "And now she's dragged Dipper and Mabel into it. Why?"

  
Jeff kicked the dirt in response, digging a deep trench in it. "She knows I won't hurt kids, can't stand the thought of it. I don't know what she's plannin' on doin' with them, but I know she's usin' them to drag me in. And dammit if I ain't goin' for it; now c'mon!"

  
He didn't need to be told twice. Silently he tossed Jeff on his back and took off running. Jeff only gave a startled yelp before holding on. He knew what to look for so Danny would take his lead. "Alright, where am I headed?"

  
"She always goes someplace outta the way. So it won't draw attention when she lights the whole fuckin' place up. Like she always does."

  
"Wait, like on fire? So that's why I smelled sulfur."

  
"She was so damn determined to kill me she went ahead and sold her soul to the devil for power. Still doesn't help her. Just gave her a few cute tricks, and keeps her comin' back for more."

  
Danny knew about a construction project that fell through thanks to gremlins; he and Dipper had inspected it as a possible monster den. No one had ever come to clear it out; it was their best bet. Now if only he could remember where it was. _'Just hold on you two. I'm coming.'_ He thought.

  
~*~

  
"Where the hell is he? He's been watching you two, I know he has. So why isn't he coming?!" The woman shrieked. She drew a knife from a hidden sheath on her thigh and slashed at the wall behind her. Sparks flew from the knife as she did; quickly stirred to a blaze by her demonic gifts. "Where is he?!"

  
Dipper flinched out the outburst and looked towards Mabel. She had retreated to sweater town a few minutes ago; he could hear her sobbing. He shifted closer and wrapped an arm around her. There was no clock in the room, but judging from how dark it was getting it was probably close to nighttime.

  
As soon as he had woken up he tried to find a way out, but that woman, Jane she said, blocked his path and locked them in. Since then he had been alternating between comforting Mabel and finding another path. Unfortunately the door was the only way he could see, everywhere else lead to pitch black halls, and now Jane was having a break down in the room just inches from them.

  
Finally he had had enough. He found a small stone and tossed it at her. She snarled.

  
"Why are you doing this? Why us?!" He struggled to stop shaking as Jane approached. She grabbed him by the collar and slammed him against the wall. He winced as that horrible, too perfect, mask came close.

  
"Because I need you. Jeff wants something from you, and I want something from him. This way we both get what we want. Isn't that nice?"

  
Dipper gave an impressive growl and kicked her, cracking the mask. He hit the floor, head knocking the wall and making him see stars. The mask fell away and he screamed at what he saw. Jane's face was a horrible amalgam of burns and torn flesh. She saw the look on his face and cackled. "He did this to me! He took my family and destroyed my face. He deserves to die!"

  
Suddenly she went still, too still. Dipper tried to clear his head while simultaneously reaching for Mabel. Her head jerked violently towards Mabel and a malicious grin spread on her face.

  
"Maybe I just need to spill a little blood first. That will bring him running." She grabbed Mabel, ignoring her brother's cries of protest, and dragged her to the center of the room. Jane pinned her under her knees, blade raised. Mabel looked at Dipper with tears in her eyes as she tried to kick her way free.

  
_'No no no! I've got to do something. Come on, Dipper. THINK!'_

  
He searched his pockets frantically for something to distract the madwoman. His fingers brushed a piece of paper and he drew it out. It was the sigil; BEN had made him start carrying it. But there wasn't time to draw it! Even if there was how would he make it noticeable enough?

  
The blade came down and Mabel screamed, managing to shift just enough to avoid a deadly injury. Instead the knife sliced into her cheek, spilling her blood on the dirty concrete below. Blind with panic, Dipper threw the sigil unthinkingly into the flames licking the walls of the room. The lines of the sigil shone a blinding white as the paper was consumed.


	19. Battle at Midnight

Two streets down Jeff fell from Danny's back, collapsing in pain as his brain started screaming at him. Danny was at his side in an instant, helping him stand. Jeff stared blindly down the road, eyes following something he couldn't see. He grabbed Danny's shoulder and pointed past a high chain fence. A ruined apartment rose, ugly and dilapidated, behind it. "In there."

  
It was all he needed. Danny made sure Jeff was holding on before charging the building with a roar. He phased through the wall and headbutted the woman in the black dress. She rolled away, stunned. Jeff recovered and jumped from his back to kick her as she tried to stand; putting a decent hole in her chest. Danny carried Mabel back to Dipper and looked them both over. He growled low and made to attack Jane again when Jeff stopped him. "Ya worry about gettin' those kids outta here. This bitch is mine."

  
Danny didn't say anything, just grabbed the twins and ran; looking back briefly. He saw the glow in Jeff's eye, one that spoke of an almost insane joy at facing this woman. It was a quick leap to realize this was not a place that even he would want to stay in. So he fled, keeping the twins tucked close so they wouldn't see.

  
Left behind, Jeff watched Jane with a predatory glare. Then he grinned and spread his arms, like a showman giving an announcement. "Ya wanted me to come, Janey. So ya got me. Whatchya gonna do now?"

  
Jane didn't speak. She grabbed her knife and lunged at him. He dodged it handily. "C'mon, doll, ya ain't even tryin'!"

  
She made another charge and just missed, knife slicing fabric but nothing else. She shrieked in anger as Jeff continued taunting her. "And where's that creativity? Our last fight was way more excitin'! Bringin' my dead family back, tryin' to saw my arms off. That was a good time!"

  
He gave a screaming laugh as the room started turning dark. He felt the thump of Jane's knife burying itself to the hilt in his back. He ripped it out and tossed it at her, slicing her hip as it passed. A low chanting rose as the flames fell. "Fuckin' finally! Let's get that demonic hoodoo goin'!"

  
He dropped to his hands and launched a kick that caught her in the stomach. A small imp came through the floor and grabbed at his hand, pinning it. With a joyful snarl he snapped it up, letting it dangle from his mouth when he turned to face her. "Maybe you're just outta practice; let's fix that shall we?"

  
Finally drawing his own knife, he brought it to bear against hers, spitting the remains of the imp in her face. He leaped away from the following swing, sticking to the wall to prepare another strike. Jane spun towards him and made to strike his feet. She just managed to shave a layer off as he jumped away, landing in a crouch and charging her leg, jaws open. He sank his teeth in her calf and tore a good chunk out as he threw her across the room.

  
Jane slammed the wall and fell still. Disappointed, Jeff strolled to her, spinning his own knife idly. "Is that it? C'mon Janey, I know ya got more than that."

  
He stopped in front her, crouched down and grabbed her hair. As he did she howled and flame shot from her mouth. It clung like a living thing and spread swiftly. He staggered back, slapping it wildly. "AGH FUCK! So the bitch did learn a new trick, eh?!"

  
Jeff tore the hoodie off and kicked it away as he laughed. Now he was really enjoying himself. "About damn time, doll. Let's get this dance started shall we?"

  
Jane jumped up and the two charged each other, blades ready. They stabbed and slashed each other in an intricate dance; practiced and performed only for them. Knives flashed in the dead light of the shadowy fires, voices grew to screaming cacophony. The manic laughter of demons filled the broken building as blood flew from all sources.

  
The moonlight was spilling in as Jeff unleashed his tentacles, grabbing Jane and hurling her through the wall. He leaped out the hole after her. She rolled away from the following assault; needle sharp tendrils stabbing at the ground and trying to bury under her skin. Jeff landed a tendril in her arm, the rest followed and wrapped around the limb, yanking her close and pulling it from the socket. He stared into the pitch black eyes, and found what he wanted. Throwing her back, he vanished, a quick Slender Walk to a safe distance. "Let's see how ya like your own damn tricks, doll."

  
Jane stood, clutching her arm to try and stem the flow of blood. She glared into the shadows, searching for her enemy. All she saw was the darkness as it closed in around her. Then she heard a voice, her father. "Jane? Jane is this what you wanted?"

  
She spun around and found herself in her house, her father standing in front of her. Blood spilled from the single slash across his neck. A hand grabbed her and turned her around. Her mother stood behind her, eyes rotting from her head as she cried in pain. "Didn't we give you everything? We loved you so much. You repaid us with this?"

  
"But we still love you, Jane. Forever."

  
They drew closer, holding her tightly between them. She felt her stomach recoil at the wet give of her mother's collapsed chest; the fountain of blood now spewing from her father's throat. "Stay with us, Jane."

  
She screamed and swung blindly, trying to chase the vision away. Her vision cleared and she saw Jeff, sitting on a tangle of his own tendrils, watching her with self-righteous glee. Jane beat her head, screaming her rage before rushing him, weapon forgotten. He reeled back in surprise as she grabbed at his throat, thumbs trying in vain to find to his windpipe.

  
"I've had enough of you!" She shrieked, fingers leaving his throat and going for his eyes. He turned away to protect the right and her thumb popped out the left. He slammed a fist in her gut, tossing her to the ground once more. She hacked and struggled to get her breath while he calmly picked up the eye and brushed it clean, popping it in.

  
"For once we're on the same page."

  
He brought the tentacles out once more; many more than she had ever seen before. They swarmed her, wrapping tightly and crushing her in their grip. Jeff raised the knot and slammed it repeatedly on the ground; feeling her bones crack more with each strike. He hurled her back inside; back where it started. She crumpled bonelessly as he let her fall to the floor.

  
Jeff kneeled down, pinning her as she had done to Mabel at the start. Unlike her, he brought his knife down with pin point accuracy on her throat. She gurgled faintly, life bleeding from her. Another fight with him, another loss for her. Status quo.

  
Jeff watched the fires, reawakened by the loss of the darkness, climb the brick and broken wood of the apartment. Another fight, another ruined home. Just like always. He picked up his hoodie, shook off the dirt and soot, and put it on. Limping slightly from a few unlucky cuts on his legs. He looked up at the moon, nearly full; looking back at the apartment, he smiled.

  
"Happy Halloween, Jane."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> to paraphrase dbz abridged. you pushed the kid button, you shouldn't have pushed the kid button


	20. Hallow's Eve Preparations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> longer than usual chapter, I got kinda carried away with this one, even though nothing really happens.

On returning Mabel insisted on finishing her costumes. Danny and Dipper stayed with her, claiming to want to help. All three knew the real reason, however; they were all terrified of what had happened, and what had almost happened. Not one wanted to let the others out of their sight; even for a second. Mabel turned frequently to see where the other two were. Danny curled tightly around Dipper, who refused to leave his grip unless Mabel asked. The endigo kept the his tail wrapped lightly around Mabel's shoulders. Each one took comfort in those small bits of attention.

  
Eventually the boys drifted off to the buzz of the sewing machine.

  
Around two in the morning Mabel finished her costumes. She set them aside with a tired grin, and wobbled over to the others with a pile of fabric scraps in her arms. She surrounded them both with the cloth, then squeezed under Danny's head to join her brother in his arms. Once both twins were safe with him, Danny began to purr in his sleep.

  
With everyone sleeping, no one saw the window slide open and Jeff let himself in. He looked at the cuddle pile, then shrugged and left to raid the fridge. He helped himself to the remaining slices of cake, followed by a pack of string cheese, and a couple of apples from the crisper. He checked the freezer to see what was there. "No ice pops? What a jip."

  
He did find a few ice cream sandwiches, which he horfed down happily. Now that his stomach was full it was time to get the mess off his hoodie. He searched around for a bathroom. When he found it he started filling the tub with hot water. "Might as well take a bath while I'm washin' this old thing. Kill two birds with one stone."

  
After the bath was full, he climbed in and let the heat work on his injuries while he scrubbed at the blood. When he got the hoodie clean, or at least got the worst of it off, he slung it over the curtain rail and leaned against the side of the tub to relax. With a full stomach and surrounded by comfortable warmth he quickly dozed off himself; ignorant of the other occupants of the house.

  
That ignorance died when the screaming started. He flailed in the tub, splashing now cold water everywhere. He went under briefly before surging out with a gasp in time to catch an older woman fleeing the room. Downstairs Mabel and Dipper jerked awake at the sound of their mother's screams. Danny went invisible and followed them to where she stood in her morning robe, shaking where she sat on the bottom stair. "Mom, what happened?"

  
She looked up, opened her mouth to speak, then stopped. A look of confusion crossed her face, as if she didn't know what was going on. She looked at her children, back up the stairs, and saw the open bathroom door. Then she broke into confused laughter. "I saw something in the tub. I think. It was probably just a spider."

  
Mabel and Dipper watched her in concern as she went into the kitchen. "I'm just not awake yet, don't worry."  
As soon as she was out of sight they bounded up the stairs, sliding to a halt on the wet floor. Jeff stopped in the middle of putting his hoodie on and stared at them. Downstairs their mother started loudly questioning where the cheese had gone. Dipper glared at Jeff and he shrugged sheepishly. "I was hungry, what?"

  
Dipper slapped his forehead and dragged the killer to his room before their mom came back up to start her morning routine. Dipper shut the door and turned to give Jeff a dressing down when Danny intervened. "Don't worry about it. All we have to do is keep him in here and your mom will forget all about this. It happened at the Mystery Shack."

  
This made Dipper turn to him, alarmed. "He was at the shack?! And what do you mean forget?"

  
Jeff took this as his cue. "I got a built in censor; folks studyin' me say it's some kinda side-effect of this energy they called Sigma radiation that I make. And I ain't leakin' it so ya can stop." Dipper froze where he'd been dragging Mabel out of the room. Jeff just sighed before continuing.

  
"Anyways, the censor. Normal person sees me and they forget in a couple hours; sometimes it works on things that ain't human. And yeah, I was there. Some of my friends wanted to know about this "weirdmaggedon" thing. We didn't hurt anyone, though. If that's what you're scared of."

  
Danny flicked his tail. That would explain why he couldn't keep a solid grip on his scent, and why Melody couldn't remember. After all, a face like Jeff's was hard to forget. "Those folks would be the SCP Foundation, right?"

  
Jeff was in his face before he could blink, knife out. "How the fuck d'ya know about them?"

  
He stayed calm, drawing out the sudden aggression. Jeff slowly relaxed as his anger was eaten, until he couldn't remember why he had gotten so mad in the first place. "Ever hear of Fenton Works?"

  
The name sounded familiar. Actually he was pretty sure Dr. Gears had talked to him about it. _'Oh yeah, he did mention it. Said not to kill anyone who worked there.'_ He nodded uncertainly.

  
"Well, one of my friends works there. I asked them for help with who you were. They love creepypasta stuff and they had access to foundation files. SCP-4140, right?"

  
"That's my number, but don't call me that. I. . ."

  
Danny interrupted. "Don't worry, that part of the file is very clear. Although I would like to hear about you punching a Dr. Bright at some point."

  
The mere mention of that incident brought a crooked smile to Jeff's face, effectively clearing the air of any bad vibes.

  
Dipper sighed in relief and sat down heavily in the computer chair. Mabel went back to the bathroom to dry the floor before going to the kitchen for damage control. The room stayed quiet as he tried to collect his thoughts. Danny climbed on his bed and looked Jeff over, sniffing him; Jeff leaned away, unnerved. Finally Dipper calmed down enough to get to the courtesies. "Thank you, for saving us last night."

  
Jeff blinked, then smiled honestly. "Nothin' doin'. I always try to keep kids safe, and it's my own damn fault ya got wrapped up with her anyways. Never thought she'd go that far for a fight."

  
"Any chance of her coming back?" Danny asked. "She acted like she'd done that before."

  
"Prob'ly. I can't keep her down for long. But if you're worried she'll come after these kids again, then don't. I gave her a good thrashin' for that alone."

  
"So she will come back? Is she a zombie?" Dipper's inquisitive nature was starting to come back, he reached for an empty notebook from the desk drawer. Jeff saw how Danny fondly shook his head at the action.

  
"You're into this kinda stuff, eh? Yeah, she'll come back. Don't know about her bein' a zombie. I do know she sold her soul for the power to kill me, but I think the Devil cheated her on that one cuz she's only pulled one over on me a couple of times." He laughed at the memory. Their first fight was still his favorite one; she'd have made a good servant if she didn't want his head on a platter.

  
The sound of crackling electricity interrupted what may have turned into a full blown interrogation. Dipper moved out of the way so BEN could get out. The virus brushed his clothes of dust and spotted Jeff. Jeff waved at him. "Hey BENny-bear, good job keepin' an eye on things here. Knew I could count on ya, ya loopy bastard. But why'd ya leave? I thought I fuckin' said to stay put."

  
BEN was flummoxed. Had something happened? "Um, well Mabel saw Masky hanging around in her closet and she got to him be civil. They made friends with him and we agreed that if things really are going down hill we'd go get some back up. So that's why I wasn't here. . . I messed up, didn't I?"

  
Jeff nodded. "Jane found the place and used the kids to draw me out."

  
He cut BEN off before the other could start apologizing. "Neither of us coulda seen this comin'. Hell, I didn't think she'd even be back yet. So ya did your job as well as ya could."

  
He gave the virus a playful noogie to help him calm down. BEN giggle-snorted. "So what's your opinion on those things I sent."

  
Jeff tilted his head. "What things? I ain't been gettin' messages from ya. 'Cept for the one about Zalgo maybe bein' involved."

  
BEN went gray. He hadn't seen the photos? His brain immediately jumped to the worst case scenario; something was trying to block their communication. He shook it away and launched into an explanation; trying to give as much detail as he could without Jeff losing interest. When things got too wordy, Jeff got bored, and they all needed him to pay attention. Danny chimed in where he could, and they eventually got the whole story together. As BEN described the picture from Dipper's uncle (they'd already had a tiff over him deleting those) Jeff went still.

  
"This ain't a joke? It's a shitty one if it is."

  
"There was no mistaking it. SCP-1128 was loose. But the picture was blurry and there was a huge wave in the way so no one's in trouble. From it at least." He added quickly, hands a frantic blur.

  
Jeff leaned on the bed, spikes digging at the floor. If the barrier had collapsed enough for that to get loose then things were were worse than he thought. Not to mention the fact that Zalgo was apparently making moves. If the barrier fell completely the ensuing panic would be the exactly the thing to give him a foothold in the Over-realm. If that happened there was no telling what he would do. Danny watched the killer with growing worry. "BEN who, or what, is this. . . Zalgo?"

  
"The embodiment of evil and decay. He is entropy incarnate. No one, not even the oldest monster, knows what he wants with the world. He's been trapped in a part of the Under-realm called the Abyss for eons. All monsters know for sure is that he wants out." Jeff answered instead. As BEN had tried to burrow into him at the mere thought of the thing.

  
The tension in the air was broken by the sounds of Mr and Mrs Pines leaving the house for the day. Mabel came in and announced that their mom was fully convinced she had seen a spider and that a raccoon had raided the kitchen. The introduction of such a cheerful person did wonders for everyone. She bounced around the room, hugging BEN and introducing herself to Jeff (only taking a second to scold him for eating the rest of Masky's cake).

  
Mabel didn't notice the change in atmosphere and instead pounced on her brother, pinning him and, with much protest, getting his costume on. Even though Mabel had grown out of the twin-themed costumes, she still hadn't lost her love of wearing them. Dipper stumbled a bit after the whirlwind of Mabel, and gave himself a look. Mabel had him in a rather elegant coachman's outfit; complete with a puffed shirt, brown velvet waistcoat, and satin cape with a tall collar. It didn't really make much sense to him until she brought out a paper mache jack o lantern; painted with a wicked grin. She looked at his head, then at the hole on the bottom, and popped it on. "Perfect fit!"

  
"I don't know about this. The neighborhood isn't safe. Especially since no one else seems to see these things." Dipper tugged at the collar.

  
Mabel shrugged it off. "It'll be fine. All the kids are in costumes and we'll be too."

  
"She has a point. The original idea of dressin' up as monsters was to keep demons and spirits from carryin' off children. That shit still holds water today, if ya can believe it." Jeff said, keeping well out of the way of hurricane Mabel.

  
Danny laughed as she bustled about making finishing touches on her brother; mostly about whether he could see or not. Finally she stepped back with a satisfied sigh.

  
"Hate to break it to you Mabel. But you can't do headless horseman without the horse." Danny pointed out.

  
She giggled mischievously. "And I hate to break it to you, Danny. But I already have a horse in mind."

  
She pulled out a leather saddle and a mass of black fabric. She stalked towards him, grinning. His face fell.

  
"Oh no."

  
~*~  
BEN and Jeff were losing their minds. Danny sat like a grumpy dog as Mabel fussed over the fit of the saddle and made sure the horse costume fit snugly. He turned to Dipper, who just put his hands up. "Don't look at me. You were the one who said it."

  
"Yep, you're also the only one big enough to ride. So suck it up and be the horse, Danny."

  
Danny just groaned, trying his best to sink to through the bed. Once she got the two of them dressed she left the room to change into her own costume. Jeff waited until she left before asking. "Ain't she gettin' started kinda early?"

  
Dipper yanked Danny's teeth off the saddle (he just started chewing on the legs instead). "Halloween's always been her favorite time of year. There's no such thing as too early for Mabel. . . Danny she's going to be mad if you tear her costume, you know."

  
He only agreed to stop if she let him take off the saddle. "It squashes my wings and makes them itch. Where did she even get the tools for leather anyway?"

  
"Ta-dah!" Mabel burst into the room, sending BEN skittering like a startled cat. Mabel had gone full Mary Poppins for her costume; wearing her own take on the nanny's going out dress. There was glitter hiding in all the white lace and even a blind man could see the rhinestones on the red accents. She gave a little spin and clapped happily when BEN gave a cheering whistle. "I wanted to make Dipper be the chimney sweep but I thought it'd be better for him to have his own costume. That way we can do our thing and not stand out."

  
BEN peeked out from the computer where he had taken cover. "What thing?"

  
Pulling the jack o lantern off, Dipper explained. "Well this is one of the days when the veil's thinnest. A lot of ghosts use that to pop through to our world; we just head out to make sure none are out to cause trouble. This year is going to be extremely important though. You two are going to help us make sure that none of the Under-realm creatures are making a break for it. Got it?"

  
"So we headin' out now or what?" Jeff asked.

  
"No," Dipper said. "I need the two of you to wait here. BEN said others may be coming; so I'll need you to explain what's going on. Can I trust you with that?"

  
BEN nodded and climbed out entirely. "I told them to wait in the backyard so I'll head there now if you want."

  
"Wait until night; lower chances of being spotted. Parents usually have their kids out and done trick or treating by then. Jeff, I'd prefer you to stay here but it's your call."

  
"I'll go with ya. I don't like the idea of ya wanderin' around with my brand of freaks on the loose. BEN knows how to hide so he'll be alright. First thing's first though, ya'll need a rundown on some of this shit. Ya like weird books right?" He asked Dipper, who nodded profusely.

  
"Then you'll love this baby. The Codex Monstruum." He drew the heavy volume from somewhere in his hoodie and let it fall on the bed. The weight of the book made everything bounce off, including Danny. The twins and spirit gathered close as he opened the book, showing them the blank pages first. "Now watch this. Here's the real deal on the Rake."

  
He turned the page and there it was! Dipper's eyes followed every line as it bled up from the paper itself. "What is this thing?"

  
"If I'm bein' honest; I don't know. It was basically tossed at me by an old guy I met in a library. Weird enough, but that library was in the Rift so. . . who knows what the fuck it's about. It's been useful as all hell though so I keep it around."

  
They reviewed possibilities until the late afternoon, when Jeff had to duck out to avoid the parents. Dipper later learned that the more often he was seen the less effective his censor would be; if he was seen enough it would quit working entirely.

  
When evening arrived they went over their roles one last time before heading out. Dipper hopped on Danny and the two took to the street. Mabel headed in the opposite direction; a stock of charms and spells tucked inside her parasol and skirts. BEN took up position over the yard to wait for the others, and Jeff went with Dipper for extra backup.


	21. The Pariah Returns

Just as Dipper said the air was filled with ghosts of all types; enjoying the atmosphere and the chance to talk to humans without worry. Jeff was utterly fascinated, and a little worried. Thankfully it seemed none of his victims were out; at least in this neck of the woods. So far things stayed quiet. The most any of them saw was tiny harmless things; that and a herd of young striders moving out of the neighborhood at a clip.

  
All in all nothing too out of the ordinary; which only served to make Jeff more on edge. Ever since he got out of the Ghost Zone something had been bothering him. That red castle. He was starting to get a nagging feeling he shouldn't have thrown a fit in it. He was equally nervous about asking Danny about it. Eventually he worked up the gumption to do so. "So, Danny. Ya know that Ghost Zone place pretty well, right?"

  
"Ye-es. I'd say so." He said, instantly suspicious.

  
"So maybe you could tell me about this place I saw."

  
~*~

  
Back at the Pines' house BEN had switched to sitting on the roof to watch. Like the others, things were quiet. He saw Mr. Widemouth and shouted a greeting. The little thing panicked for a second before realizing who it was. Then he was on the roof to share with his favorite gossip buddy.

  
"And then the one in the sweater swings at me, I go flying over the fence. By the time I woke up I was in the next county, I swear!"

  
BEN rolled his eyes. Widemouth loved to exaggerate, but he had heard the same thing from Mabel so it wasn't too out of context. He did notice that Widemouth had come alone this time. Curiosity peaked he asked, "Isn't Ickbar usually with you? Did he find some other kid to swindle, or what?"

  
Widemouth frowned. "Wrong place at the wrong time. He tried to go after one of Slender's newbies and Jeff got him. Sent him through a shredder." He sniffed dramatically. "Not a scrap left to stitch together."

  
He broke into overwrought tears, literal waterfalls gushing from his beady eyes. BEN just rolled his eyes harder, wishing he could pop one out like Jeff for extra effect. When Widemouth noticed he wasn't getting any sympathy he stopped. "What, no comforting hugs? I just lost my best friend and not even a 'there there'?"

  
"You and I both know he was a convenience to you. At best."

  
Widemouth cackled. "Yes but a useful convenience. You're right though. I'll find another stooge. Well you look like you're up to something important so I'll leave, see you around!"

  
He waved and jumped down, bouncing away in his own inimitable fashion. He leaned back on the roof to rest his eyes. _'So Jeff killed Ickbar, good for him; he'd been after that guy for a long time.'_

  
A rustle in the bushes caught his attention. He rolled to his stomach and stayed low to see who was coming. It was Toby. Confused, BEN hopped down and confronted him. "I know backup was coming, but why you? You're a proxy, and I thought Slender wasn't going to let any of you go."

  
Toby looked startled, he glanced around furtively and shushed him. "He d-doesn't actually know I l-left. Th-the others are co-oming though. I just w-went ahead on my own-n."

  
_'He just wants to help Jeff. That's actually cute.'_

  
"How many are coming?"

  
"Um, both J-jacks, Smiledog, a-and M-masky and Hoodie are sn-sneaking out too."

  
He was actually surprised. "That's more than I was expecting. Aren't Tim and Brian worried?"

  
"Nope. M-masky likes this f-family." Toby grinned. BEN noticed he had his own mask now; a face scarf and goggles. Simple but it still got job the done. The bustles rattled again and a wet nose touched his hand. With a bark, Smiledog announced his arrival. After that it was only a few minutes before the rest showed up as well.

  
BEN caught them up on what was going on, and what Jeff believed may happen. Everyone shared worried looks. Even Laughing Jack became uncharacteristically serious at the thought of Zalgo being anywhere but the Abyss. BEN was about to contact Jeff, when the sky lit up with purple fire. A hole burned violently through the air, and a knight in black, riding a vicious looking bat winged unicorn, emerged. The knight raised a sword of black metal and declared, **"Tremble mortal fools, for my master returns!"**

  
His announcement was followed by booming laughter, and an enormous figure shouldering his way into reality.

  
~*~

  
"YOU DID WHAT?!"

  
Jeff flinched. He knew Danny would be mad, but this was beyond normal mad. "You're actin' like I caused the end of the world."

  
"You might as well have! That castle belongs to Pariah Dark, the strongest ghost I ever had to face. Even with everyone in the Ghost Zone at my back and a robotic power suit, the fight nearly killed me; I was out cold for days after it. That coffin was the only thing that could keep him trapped. Without it we're screwed!"

  
Danny paced anxiously, forcing Dipper to get down before he got too dizzy.

  
Dipper grabbed his face and pulled him close, looking him in the eyes as they touched foreheads. "That was the old you. You're different now, stronger. The Ancients chose you to be King for a reason. I bet you could beat him without having to trap him."

  
Danny gazed back, seeing the faint wisps of frost on Dipper's face from his breath. His eyes turned away, doubting. "Do you really think that?"

  
"Of course I do. You went toe to toe with Bill Cipher before you even had a grasp on your powers, and you held your own just fine! I remember when you told me about Pariah. He's a pushover compared to Bill. You can take him, and whatever he decides to bring!"

  
"I guess you're right. No, I know you're right. I can do this!" Danny's eyes blazing with renewed determination. He pulled Dipper closer and kissed him, hard. Then he pulled away with an exuberant whoop. He was more than ready for anything.

  
"Well I would love to see what you can do, boy."

  
Dipper went from flushed to pale as the three of them turned. Danny phased off his costume, growling. "Pariah."

  
If he was shocked by the lack of fear he didn't show it. Instead Pariah focused in on the crown above Danny's head. His red eyes flashed with rage. "USUPER! What right do you have to MY kingdom."

  
"I have more right to it than you ever did. You forced your way to the throne. I was chosen. Not by any one person, but the by the Realm itself!"

  
"LIES!"

  
He manifested his mace and swung at Danny, who jumped out of the way. Jeff had grabbed Dipper the instant the ghost had appeared, pulling him well out of the way of the ensuing fight. Danny howled, creating shards of ice in the air and lancing them towards the false king. While he was occupied smashing the ice, Danny took the chance to move to Jeff. "Get moving. Go get Mabel and get them both out of here. If Pariah's here then Fright Knight isn't far. Deal with him."

  
A giant hand wrapped around his tail and swung him overhead. "GO!"

  
Jeff hefted Dipper over his shoulder and ran for it. Dipper pulled out the walkie talkie that he and Mabel carried at all times. "Mabel, come in. How far from the community park are you? Over."

  
Mabel's voice came through a crackle of frightened children. "About two blocks, but I'm kind of busy! Over."

  
This was not good. "What's happening? Over!"

  
"This portal opened in the sky and skeleton ghosts are all over the place. I'm getting everyone I can to the park right now! Over."

  
Dipper and Jeff both looked up at that. Sure enough, hundreds of green boned skeletons were dropping from the sky. "Okay, once you're there we need to initiate a large scale cleansing. Over."

  
Mabel gave the affirmative and cut off. Jeff shouted over the rising sound of bones rattling. "Where's this Fright Knight at?"

  
Being jostled around so much made it hard to think, but Dipper managed to get it out. "He'll be close by. If I remember right, oof, Fright Knight will try and plant his sword somewhere. That'll drag this place to the Ghost Zone. Judging from the position of the portal I'd say he's," He gulped. "Right at our house."

  
In the Pines' backyard Fright Knight found himself surrounded by a rather motley crew of beings he had never seen. He swung his sword at them, trying to intimidate them into backing off, but they kept up the pressure. Danny had told BEN exactly what that sword was capable of so he made sure everyone kept their distance without letting him gain too much ground.

  
He was just directing Laughing Jack to grab him when Jeff vaulted the house, with Dipper clinging to his neck. Jack jumped him, wrapping his arms around the knight multiple times to bind him tight. The sword went flying from his hand and spun through the air.

  
"Don't let him get it!" Dipper cried.

  
Fright Knight made a grab for his sword, but was swiftly buried by the others as they dog-piled him. Jeff went for him as well, tying him up in a knot of tentacles that he quickly severed from his body. The tentacles died off instantly, becoming harder than stone. Dipper jumped for the sword, just brushing the hilt; the sword was sent spinning over his head. The blade came down with a hard thump, burying itself in the ground. "Uh oh. Everyone get down, now!"

  
Dipper threw himself to the ground, hands over his head. With Fright Knight solidly trapped the others followed suit, Jeff put as much of himself as he could in front of them. From the pommel of the sword a beam of green light shot upwards. At the height of its beam it released a fountain of energy that slowly drifted back down, aiming to covering the entire neighborhood in a dome of green. Dipper grabbed his walkie. "Mabel, change of plans; find the touchdown point of this barrier and make sure everyone is outside it. Jeff, go and make sure she gets back here."

  
For Jeff was hesitant. "But, I. You."

  
"Danny said to keep us safe right? We'll handle the Fright Knight if he gets loose. Now get going, help her get the cleansing started."

  
Not willing to leave someone he considered a kid, Jeff continued to stall until BEN threw a stone at his head to get his attention. Jeff glared, and BEN locked eyes. "You hesitated. I died because of it. You want that to happen again? Then move!"

  
The rough reminder sent Jeff into action. He dashed into the house, using the Rift to make to the park in time. When he leaped out of space between the monkey bars he spotted Mabel on the far end; struggling to get the panicking crowd past a line she had drawn. With a powerful leap he landed behind her. The barrier was closing down fast and Mabel couldn't get anyone else to move.

  
"Safety now, stability later!" He yelled. Jeff lashed out with several tendrils, sweeping the people past the barrier and retracting them just as it landed. He lost a few tentacle tips but it was a small loss.

  
When the barrier touched down every skeleton in the area stopped and knelt, facing the direction of their king. Jeff snarled and drew his knife, keeping Mabel at his back in case they suddenly attacked. "Get your brother on the horn. We need to know what's goin' on here!"

  
She did. There was a lot of interference from the barrier, forcing them to move away until it cleared enough for the twins to hear each other. "Dipper, the skeletons stopped. Over."

  
He answered immediately. "They're waiting. Fright Knight is tied down so as long as the sword stays in the ground they're frozen."

  
Jeff grabbed the walkie and shouted. "That's fine and dandy but what the hell're we s'posed to do about them?"

  
"You guys need to do the cleansing. It'll clear them out so we're free to grab the sword. According to Danny if we resheathe it in a pumpkin it'll reverse the effects. But if we do draw the sword we'll be brought to the Ghost Zone and the skeletons will animate. That's why the cleansing comes first."

  
Mabel took it back. "Right, starting the ritual now. Stay safe over there, bro-bro. Over."

  
She took Jeff by the arm and lead him over to a decent sized hill topped with a flat stone. There was nothing unusual about the rock itself, but Jeff couldn't help but feel a tingle of power from it. This stone was used for magic, and often. Jeff stayed back, keeping an eye on the skeleton army surrounding them. Mabel knew what she was doing, he was just here for defense.

  
She opened her parasol and took out several pouches of herbs and a chip of stone from around her neck. Using the stone she drew a complicated looking image that hurt Jeff's head to look at until she closed the final line. Then she traced it over again with each of the herbs, and again it made Jeff's head hurt. "Hey Mabel, this isn't gonna hurt me or any of the others, is it?"

  
She traced the line one more time with a strange smelling powder. "We designed this thing to work on spirits in a certain range of power. BEN, Danny and this Pariah guy are well outside that range. So he's safe."

  
With a sigh of relief Jeff gave Mabel the thumbs up and hit the deck, just in case. Mabel reached under her skirt and grabbed a box of matches. She lit it on the stone and dropped it on the lines, backing off as fast as she could in her costume. She ducked down beside Jeff. He put an arm over her to keep her down.

  
The fire raced along the lines, splitting and reforming like a domino chain. When the last of the herbs were consumed a fountain of blue gray began bubbling up from the center of the circle. It burbled around, slowly growing in size until, with a sound like a breaking dam, the energy rushed out. It surged over them and out of the park. The skeletons were swept up and dissolved in the current of watery power. It gushed over houses and swallowed the neighborhood. It filled the dome to near bursting before it was all drawn back to the circle with the thunderous roar of a reservoir draining.

  
As soon as it drained away Fright Knight made a leap for his sword, the energy having weakened the tendrils holding him. With a shout he grabbed it and pulled it free, throwing Laughing Jack, who was the first to jump on him, into the brush. He held his sword aloft, laughing victoriously. Only for the laughter to slowly die as he saw no army arrive.

  
When the others saw they were in the clear they tackled Fright Knight again. BEN came running from the front yard with a jack o lantern. He dropped down, sliding towards the falling spirit, pumpkin held in front of him like baseball star stealing home. In a show of perfect universal synchronicity, Fright Knight's sword arm came down right as BEN slid past. The blade buried in the orange flesh and sent out the beam of light again. This time pulling it back in.

  
The Ghost Zone, which had been visible through the dome the entire time, rippled and faded. Fright Knight wailed and pounded the ground like a toddler throwing a fit. Everyone, Dipper included, cringed at the display. "Someone do something before I actually start to feel bad for him."

  
With an enthusiastic nod Laughing Jack popped out of the bushes, trotted over, and, cheerfully and carefully, stomped his head into the dirt. And just like that, Fright Knight was out of the picture. Dipper pumped his fist, cheering. "All right Danny. The rest is up to you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's the first half of the boss fight, next the big guy. (apparently throwing rocks is the preferred way of getting someone's attention in the shiftverse)


	22. The Rite of Succession

Danny laughed as the real world reasserted itself. "Looks like your invasion failed. Again. Some warlord you are."

  
Pariah roared in anger, swinging the mace with bone crushing force. Caught off guard, Danny took it in a wing, mangling it. He shrieked and lashed out in response, tearing through the false king's armor like paper. He howled and screamed throughout the attack, sending plumes of ice and frost through the air.

  
With an almighty roar of his own, Danny took to the skies, grabbing Pariah in his claws and dragging him upwards. Pariah struggled, swinging his mace and throwing fire where he could; trying his damnedest to ground the raging endigo again. Danny ignored the burning in his limbs, bringing them both as high as he could before his ruined wing failed. When it did he covered himself in thick ice, freezing Pariah to him as well.

  
The two plummeted with an air siren wail to the earth. The ice shattered as they crashed, showering the king with razor shards of cold death. He could feel them draining his energy as the burrowed into him. He flung Danny away and burned the ice off him.

  
Danny staggered, recovering from the impact. Taking his chance, Pariah gripped his mace in both hands and coated it in flames. He charged his opponent. Danny reared up and took the mace in his own claws, ignoring the fire that jumped for his eyes. He rolled on his back, taking the other with him and, planting his feet in his stomach, kicked him into the air again.

  
He rolled to all fours and swung his tail, ice forming into a mace of his own. Pariah's armor crunched, breastplate falling apart at the blow. As soon as he landed Danny pounced on him, rolling back and forth as they struggled to gain the upper hand. That advantage went to Pariah when he shot a ball of fire at Danny's face. He reeled back, spewing chilling fog to put it out. It gave Pariah enough of an opening to swing at him a second time, catching him in the chest.

  
Danny gripped the mace, leaping along it and up Pariah's arm; headbutting him in the nose, and sinking a claw in his remaining eye. Pariah roared in pain, throwing him off; they backed away from each other, circling. Both were panting heavily. Pariah laughed harshly. "Well, you're putting up more of a fight than last time. More powerful. But your power is still a burden to you, isn't it?"

  
Danny shuddered, pulling his ruined wing in tight. "And you're still trying the same old routines. You may have been able to talk me down before, Hannibal, but it won't work this time. I'm fighting for two worlds. You only fight for yourself."

  
Confused as he was by the choice of words he failed to see his own had had the opposite effect. Instead of browbeating Danny as they had before, it only fueled him; reminding him just why he was fighting. Why he was the true king. He raised his head high and gave a glorious howl to the moon. The ripples of his battle cry carried across the veil, giving hope to all who heard it. The force behind the cry shook Pariah to his core. He thrust his mace into the ground, falling to his knees.

  
As the echoes passed he struggled to stand up. Seeing this, Danny breathed deep, pulling on his core for everything it had. His eyes burned white. When the pressure could grow no higher he unleashed the Aether Fury in an unholy storm of cold fire. With another howl he hit Pariah with a Wail at the same time.

  
Under the unrelenting power, Pariah's last reserves crumbled; his armor buckled and failed, and even his aura collapsed. Danny's eyes still blazed as he approached, wings propped straight and head held high. With the barest nudge he pushed Pariah to the ground, standing atop his chest.

  
Pariah made a last desperate strike, aiming for Danny's throat. His fist collided with the gorget, right on the amulet. It's power, dormant until then, awoke; sucking the last of his strength away. He collapsed. The false king, defeated again.

  
Danny wrapped his claws around Pariah's throat, pressing close. "There's no sarcophagus waiting for you this time. Only oblivion."

  
The king cried out in dismay as fangs buried in his spectral flesh, tearing him apart. Danny lunged again and again, like a starved shark. Slowly but surely he stripped Pariah to the core, dissolving and swallowing his armor as well. He left nothing of the man behind.

  
Not even his core.

  
He placed it between his teeth and crushed it without ceremony, drinking in the last essence of his once feared enemy. His ring and crown fell with a clatter, the skull cracking on impact; all that was left of the infamous Pariah Dark. Danny, without a doubt in his mind, claimed their power for his own. The shattered ring reformed under his touch, now bearing the Yggdrasil tree and shining with soft, silver blue ripples of ectoplasm; instead of the green flames. The crown changed as well, melting and molding into delicate silver filigree shaped like sprigs of thyme around his own crown, framing the star sapphire in the center of a blooming lotus. Hidden just above the sapphire was a single edelwiess.

  
Danny trembled as the new power rushed through his core, slowly being absorbed and reformed into his own aura. He wasn't sure what exactly would happen now that he had done this, but he knew he wouldn't be dealing with it alone. Still a little shaky he returned to the house, and most importantly, to Dipper.

  
~*~

  
Only Clockwork saw the change his pupil's choice wrought. Pariah's castle, a beacon of violence and anger, began to change. A gentle wash of snow covered the island, hardy trees and flowers sprouting from it in moments. The stone of the walls turning to gentle slopes of starry twilight, forged by the void surrounding it. All signs of the previous owner vanished in seconds. Leaving a gorgeous castle that exuded safety from it's surreal twists of ramparts and intertwining towers. Clockwork could see the influences of Danny's many friends and allies in the castle; the busy calls of his own clocks, gears and bells; the stars of Nocturne's dreaming, the ice and snow of the Far Frozen.

  
And that was just outside. He had no doubts that once he entered he would see the influences of his human friends. But that could wait for later. For now he flew back, watching the aura of the new castle spread. It would most likely relocate itself soon to a more suitable location, and he wanted to know where that would be so he could inform his apprentice. As the last of the changes settled in he felt a bloom of pride once more in his core.

  
"The rite is complete. Well done, Daniel." 


	23. A Time for Rest and Learning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bit of a slow chapter, just some down time for everyone.

Danny returned to find the yard surprisingly clean, although it didn't take super vision to see the way the grass had been moved around to fill in any damaged places. He landed, just a little wobbly, and was immediately grabbed in a hug by Dipper. "That was amazing! We heard it all the way from here!"

  
He flushed proudly and returned the hug, wincing slightly. It wasn't missed, though. Dipper pulled back and gasped; Danny's wing was a mess, dripping his greenish blue blood across the lawn. He forced him to lay down so he could see it better. With careful hands he stretched the wing out, trying not to aggravate any of the tears he could see. He sensed BEN hovering at his shoulder. "Yikes, it looks like it went through a mangler."

  
"It's a bad injury. I don't have the means to fix it here, but he's too tired to go get the help he needs."

  
Eyeless Jack tapped his shoulder, then pulled out a suture kit from his pockets. "That might help, but he'll need more than that. He needs a special medicine that can only be found in the Ghost Zone. I can't get there myself and humans shouldn't be alone there."

  
He wanted to physically beat himself up; he'd be doing it mentally for days after this anyways. Eyeless ignored him and went to work closing the tears: the holes would need something else. It wouldn't be enough but he had some dressing to at least cover them with. He didn't think a ghost could get an infection, but he wasn't going to risk it.

  
Dipper had backed away to let him work. Unable to keep his mind quiet he began pacing; so he was at least doing something. "Dipper, did you see that?! It was crazy."

  
_'Thank goodness for hyper sisters.'_ He thought. Mabel came running across the lawn, leading Jeff by the hand. She skidded to a stop and let Jeff go stumbling into his friends; he was quickly swept up and spun around by Laughing Jack. Toby circling them both like a happy dog. Then she saw Danny and gasped too.

  
"I know, Mabel. I know what he needs but I can't get it! Argh!” He started beating his fists against his head; angry at both himself and at Pariah for doing this.

  
Jeff extricated himself from the affectionate clown. “So why can’t ya?”

  
Frustrated, he turned on Jeff. “Because I can’t get to the Ghost Zone! How many people do I have to say this to?!”

  
On seeing the pain in his eyes Jeff crouched in front of him. “Hey, hey, easy there. I can get ya there in no time.”

  
“You can?” Dipper sniffled, wiping away the starts of a stress cry.

  
“Hell yeah I can! I’ve been there before through the Rift. I don’t know the place though so navigatin’ will be your job.”

  
He cleared the last of the tears and nodded. “Well then, let’s get goin’!”

  
Dipper kept his eyes closed for most of the trip. The chaos of noise on Jeff’s chosen root was giving him a headache. Luckily he didn’t need to endure it long. Jeff easily found the door he had used to enter the last time and went through; fully expecting to not be in the same place. Sure enough, he put his foot straight in a snowdrift. When Dipper felt the wind he jumped off excitedly. “This is right where we need to be!”

  
“Yeah, go figure.” Jeff said, scratching his head as he noted where the doorway was. He followed Dipper since he apparently knew where to go. He lead them to a series of caverns, a carved horn sat on the wall. Dipper grabbed this and blew it as hard as possible. Jeff could swear his brain rattled from the noise. Not long after the echo faded, and his ears stopped ringing, a shadow approached from the tunnels.

  
Jeff felt his heart drop at the creature that walked in.

  
~*~

  
“That was the scariest fuckin’ guy I’ve ever seen.”

  
“Watch your language. Frostbite’s not that scary he’s just. . . a little intense sometimes.”

  
Dipper kept the jars of medicinal salve close to his chest on the way back, not risking dropping even one. Frostbite had been quick about mixing it, giving detailed instructions on how to use it. He even made extra for other emergencies. They came out through his hall closet to see that Danny had been moved to his bed in the meantime.

  
The endigo was resting somewhat peacefully; his wing arranged to lay without causing pain. Everyone else was keeping watch; he shooed them out of the room so he could treat Danny without interruption. First thing first though. He peeled the gauze off each wound and spread the medicine on as Frostbite instructed, then he covered them again.

  
With that done he changed clothes and sat down on the bed. Danny was taking up most of it but he found a place to squeeze in nearby. He halfway considered getting up to see what everyone else would do for sleeping arrangements, but changed his mind when Danny shifted in his sleep; tail draping across his legs.

  
Besides he could hear Mabel down the hall, making sure everyone who was staying had a place to be. Things could wait until morning; now he was comfortable and happy for once since the start of all this.

  
Things remained blissfully calm over the following weeks, giving everyone, most importantly Danny, some much needed time to recover. When he wasn't fretting over Danny's wing, Dipper took the opportunity to meet the others who had come to help. It was rather funny to see the dynamic between all of them; he learned a lot, and all of it went into his own notes. The stack was really building up. _'I'll be Grunkle Stan's age by the time I sort all this out!'_

  
BEN was helping him sort through it all, however, and then some. The virus had practically taken over his website, carrying out his admin duties for him, giving him plenty of time to sort his notes; all the while continuing to monitor it for anything alarming. "After all," he said. "If it wasn't for your site, Jeff probably would never have noticed. At least, not until it was too late. Thanks to you we'll be able to head this off."

  
_'Hopefully before Zalgo could do anything with it.'_ They both thought.

  
Tim and Brian (which he learned were Hoodie and Masky's real names) spent most of the time together; bouncing between there and the Under-realm. As BEN had expected, their Master did not take kindly to them leaving. Especially when they had been given specific orders to remain at the manor. Luckily, Jeff had managed to talk him out of a punishment; now they simply had to keep tabs on the house, and the twins especially.

  
Eyeless Jack left not long after the whole debacle. Dipper learned that he was a cannibal who decided he had best find a suitable hunting ground. One that wouldn't lead to him being attacked by an enraged ghost, or chewed out by Jeff. As for Jeff, he seemed to be the one in charge when Slender wasn't around. Or at least the only non-proxy who could be trusted to follow orders; even if it was to his own whims. Dipper noticed how he was almost constantly shadowed by Laughing Jack and Toby. A fact he found quite odd.

  
Or at least he did, until he accidentally interrupted "girl time" between Mabel and Tim one day. Mabel was giving him a pedicure while he laid back. He was wearing his mask, but that was just because she would bedazzle it given half a chance. When asked, he lifted it up, watching him with one eye; Mabel had somehow convinced him to let her put on some peach lipstick. "Jack was originally a kid's imaginary friend from what I've heard. He acts enough like a kid that it ticks all of Jeff's "protect this" boxes. As for Toby? He was mess when he first got here; Jeff was the only one to get through to him, and he's the only patient enough to handle him long term. He's got a lot of baggage that has nothing to do with being a proxy. That's not to say the rest of us are doing fine, but we all have our issues."

  
That was something Dipper could agree with.

  
It took another week for Danny's wing to heal to the point it didn't hurt to move (read: for Dipper not to freak out anytime it twitched). During that time, when he was awake at least, he worked on sketching out the paintings he had promised Princess Dora. It took a lot of working, reworking, and reworking again. But he eventually reached a result he was happy with. The battle against Pariah had turned into a Bosch-style triptych, awash with the kind of tiny details the artist was known for; the whole thing took several sheets of paper, and was eventually transferred to a smaller collection of poster boards to fully sketch out.

  
The other had become a mix of styles, emphasizing the differences between the two rulers. Dorathea was drawn with sweeping lines and elegance, while her brother was composed of sharp edges and heavy marks. Somewhere along the line he had wound up painting them as well; where he got the paints and canvases he didn't' know, and never did find out. Either way the results were lovely. He was honestly surprised with himself; he may never have learned professionally, but he could mimic quite well, apparently.

  
The only downside was that now he had nothing to do until his wing healed. Mabel helped him wrap the paintings for delivery, and talked Dipper into letting him out of bed. The fact that he had gotten bored enough to start chewing up his bedding helped that argument. Allowed to wander around, Danny took to sunbathing in the back yard. During this time he found a rare partner in Eyeless Jack. Originally he had only spoken to him for approval over his choice of hunting. Later on the two found a common ground in their lives; having both once been human, transformed by unforeseen circumstances. Ironically they had both also become cannibals by those same circumstances.

  
On that note Danny began following Eyeless on his hunts, eating his leftovers. The spread of weirdness had not accompanied a global rise in aether levels, and outside Gravity Falls Danny was beginning to feel the pangs of hunger once more. Being Eyeless Jack's cleanup crew afforded him a little more food, reducing the number of times he had to leave the area. It had the added benefit of leaving no evidence, keeping the public eye turned away from the neighborhood.

  
Dipper or Eyeless would check his wing each day. After almost three weeks of being confined to the house and yard, he was healed enough for them to give him the thumbs up. Once he was given a clean bill of health he hightailed it to the Ghost Zone. To his surprise, he wasn't going alone. Jeff had insisted on coming once he learned where the paintings were going. "I got off on the wrong foot there. I wanna chance to set shit straight. Think she'll hear me out?"

  
"Of course. Dora's very nice. She was just feeling a little unappreciated when you first met. But try not to curse around her."

  
"I'll give it my best."

  
Jeff stayed well back as Danny opened a portal, uncharacteristically nervous. The Zone may have been part of the Rift, but it was also a creature all its own. Jeff didn't know this creature and was loathe to disturb any part of it. Once Danny had thoroughly checked the exit he titled his head towards the portal, letting Jeff know to go first. Jeff took a deep breath, nervously tugging the corner of his mouth with his tongue, made sure the paintings were secure, and stepped through.

  
The first thing he noticed on arrival was the faint taste of lime in the back of his mouth; the second thing was that the grounds of the castle were doing much better in the short time he'd been away. Confused he pointed to the growth, blinking. Danny caught on quickly. "This place is connected to the mental state of the ruler. Dora was having a bit of a mental crisis; which is why the place looked pretty, well, dead; for lack of a better term. Still, even at its worst this place looks way better than it did when her brother ruled. Whether she believes it or not, she's done a lot of good for this place."

  
"Damn, that is impressive. So is everywhere like that or is it just here?"

  
"I'm pretty sure most inhabited parts change. The Zone will adapt to the will of the ghost that resides there, and that place is considered a ghost's lair. But I think Dorathea's territory is the only one that changes this drastically."

  
"Huh, makes sense. So do we just walk in or what?"

  
"Yeah, she's open to guests."

  
Danny, now full size, gently shouldered the door open. Jeff chose to hide in plain sight, climbing up his haunches to duck behind one glassy wing; all the while keeping the paintings nestled safely in his tendrils. A skeleton saw him and raised its trumpet to announce them. Dora, forgoing manners entirely, came barreling down the stairs and jumped on Danny to hug him. Danny caught her in one arm and returned the embrace.

  
"Welcome back, Danny! It's good to- oh, who's this?" She peeked around his shoulder to see Jeff trying his hardest to melt into Danny's mane. Danny wrapped his tail around him and set him down alongside the princess.

  
"This is your would be intruder."

  
"My he's quite tall isn't he? I'm terribly sorry for attacking you. I was feeling rather upset with things and wrongfully chose to take it out on you." She curtsied.

  
Jeff was flabbergasted. He wavered, unsure how to respond. Danny nudged him and he sputtered. "Wait, but I was gonna apologize to you! Fuck now I gotta, wait shit. I didn't mean- Aw, cunts."

  
Danny stared in shock at the sudden profanity. "Jeff, I said to keep a lid on that!"

  
Dora's laughter stopped any potential argument. "It's been so long since anyone's spoke so. . . frankly around me."

  
Deciding to keep his lip zipped for the remainder of the visit, Jeff awkwardly thrust the wrapped paintings at the princess, then quickly ran back to his hiding place on Danny. No matter how polite and well-mannered she was, he was not about to forget the dragon that attacked him. Ignoring him, Danny watched anxiously as Dora carefully removed the plain brown wrapping; laying down to stop himself from pacing. She propped each portrait against Danny's side and clapped excitedly.

  
"They're lovely! Although I don't think we can put them in the main hall now. That's alright, though, I know just where to put them."

  
Danny chuckled. "Yeah I got a little out of control with the Pariah one. Before I even knew what was happening I had painted them completely!"

  
"You've done a wonderful job on them, Danny. I'm proud to have them in my castle. Thank you."

  
She hugged his arm again, and he lowered his head to nuzzle her. She escorted them back outside. "You should see what happened to Pariah's, I mean your, castle sometime. It's lovely."

  
"What do you mea- and she's gone." Danny huffed and shrugged. His curiosity was peaked however, so he took Jeff's hood in his mouth and tossed him back through the portal home to go about his own business. He took a second to remember where Pariah's castle was then, with flick of his wings, took off for it.

  
The sight that greeted him was so unexpected he first thought he went the wrong way. The cool shades and soft snow felt like home to him. He trekked around the perimeter, taking in the soft glimmer of void and stairs hidden inside the smooth ice-like walls. At first he couldn't find a door, but when he drew close to the castle the walls melted back to form an opening for him; reforming once he passed.

  
The familiar and comforting sounds of gears, happily ticking away the time, wrapped around him inside. Far removed from the outer decor, the main hall greeted him with a design that reminded him strongly of the Northwest Manor, minus the taxidermy, mixed with Ford's study. There was even a sweeping double staircase, just like the manor's foyer. A plush rug, like the furs of the Far Frozen, covered the floor and absorbed all the sound of his steps. He ascended the left stairway and explored the warm halls and each twisting tower. He half expected to feel the disorienting, gravity defying, spirals as the tower twisted under and around itself whimsically. But, just like Nocturne's own lair, he felt none of it.

  
Calm inspection turned to joyous exploration as Danny darted from room to room, inside and out. He leaped across the ramparts and from tower to tower. He didn't yet understand just why the castle had changed, but he knew it was his now. He jumped down into a courtyard and found it to be clear of snow, with a feeling reminiscent of Gravity Falls in autumn. Patches of Ghostmint grew in the nooks of the walls while Yggdrasil climbed up the trunks and bloomed serenely along the branches of the many kinds of trees. He even found a small portal that opened on his territory, letting in the aether saturated air of the Falls to drift around the castle.

  
When he came back in to one of the rooms he found, on a delicate table of living plants, a pocket watch and a note; neatly tied up with a black ribbon. Danny didn't need to read it to know that Clockwork had been here. He took the watch, tying the long strap around his waist with a smile. Even there he could hear it ticking away faintly.

  
With a much lifted heart he finally, though reluctantly, left. He returned to see Jeff and Masky standing beside each other; Masky calm as ever, and Jeff looking on the verge of a breakdown. Concerned, he took a step forward. Before he could say anything Jeff paled, somehow, and tossed the phone down, hands shaking. He looked at Masky. "Is he fuckin' serious? I can't bring a couple of human kids down there!"

  
"You know Master doesn't kid."

  
"Ugh yeah, for a guy with such long arms he's got a real short funny bone."

  
The only response was a blank stare, followed by Masky taking his phone back and leaving. He snarled and beat his head against the wall. The sound brought the others; who stared at him like he was insane. Or, well, more insane than usual.

  
"Jeff, why are you making holes in the drywall?" Dipper asked testily. Everyone's jaw dropped as he explained the situation.

  
They would be meeting the Slenderman. Tonight. At his manor. In the Under-realm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've always felt that, after the hell his life was, Tim would take any pampering he could get, even if it meant makeup and mani-pedis.


	24. Deep in the Weird

The tension in the room was so thick even a team of beavers with industrial saws couldn't cut it. Dipper and Mable were pressed close to each other, and Danny was arched up, tail straight and spikes of ice running down his spine. Danny spoke first, a mix of curious and upset. "What does he want with them? If he hurts them, I swear."

  
"He ain't gonna do that. I've already got on his ass plenty of times for that. And I don't fuckin' know what he wants to talk to ya for. If I had to bet it'd prob'ly be about how all the monsters are comin' here. Even I can't explain that shit. All I got are theories."

  
Dipper stepped forward. "Then we should go, right?"

  
"Bringin' you guys down there? I ain't doin' it! Maybe ya don't know this but the Under-realm is THE place for monsters, and not just the real ones; humans too. That place is crawlin' with killers of all kinds."

  
"Doesn't matter. We're going to need all the help we can get. If that book of yours is right, then Slenderman is the best person to have on our side."

  
Jeff grumbled and went back to putting his head through the wall; one smack at a time. He really did not want to bring these two to Slenderman. He showed entirely too much interest in them. His biggest worry in all of this wasn't the idea that they could get killed down there (BEN had told him Mabel's troll story), but the thought that Slender might see them as potential Proxies.

  
If it came to that then he would fight him; he's done it before, and he'd keep doing it as much as he had to. The life of a Proxy was it's own kind of hell; certainly not something for two young teens who had their own weird problems to deal with. He didn't voice these concerns, however. They were his and his alone to handle should it come up. After he punched a good sized hole in Dipper's wall he stopped banging his head.

  
The others had all stayed during this; watching with a mix of curiosity and worry. Eventually Jeff turned, real eye rolling dizzily in its socket. "Okay fine, I'll take ya to see Slenderdick. But ya ain't leavin' my side for a second. That goes for all four of ya, got it?"

  
"Got it. Maybe we should wait until you can see straight though." Mabel said, carefully bringing Jeff to the chair to sit. He laughed giddily.

  
"I ain't been straight a day in my fuckin' life."

  
~*~

  
Given the risk of bringing humans of any kind through the Rift, he'd already taken his chance with Dipper, Jeff decided to take them through a Gate instead. He chose one further away from the neighborhood than the Gate Masky used so frequently these days. Danny had insisted on coming along as well, but Dipper had gotten him to stay behind; reminding him that, whether they were there or not, monsters were still showing up, and someone had to keep them under control.

  
Danny reluctantly agreed to stay behind, but only after he saw them off. Jeff peeked through the gate on arriving, making sure it was clear before bringing the twins through. He had chosen this particular Gate for good reason; it was closer to the Bloodleaf Trail than any other. Making it a short jaunt to the manor, and lessening the chance of encountering anything that might make a pass at them. He still had to stare down a wandering Seed-eater that strayed too close.

  
Thankfully, that was the only thing that happened to them. Otherwise they arrived unscathed. Both were ungodly nervous of this meeting; Dipper had read what Jeff's book had on the Slenderman, with Mabel looking over his shoulder. Now he barely remembered anything beyond the fact that he was supposedly some ancient faerie; which was bad enough. Dipper hated dealing with the Fae in any capacity. The small, annoying ones you could just swat without any repercussions, but it you put so much as a nose hair out of place around the older, more powerful ones you could be cursed with the worst of the worst afflictions; that was just the good ones. A "bad" fairy could straight up kill you, and for no reason beyond they thought it would be interesting.

  
Needless to say, Dipper was well on his way to a panic attack before they even got to the front door. Jeff pulled him back, sitting him down and pushing him against his chest. "Focus on me, Dipper. Whaddya hear in there?"

  
Dipper, trembling and ready to run screaming, struggled to do as Jeff instructed. He turned his attention to the other's chest. He could hear the woosh of air, and a strange double thud. "Heartbeats. Fast ones."

  
"Yeah I got an auxiliary heart, fuckin' awesome huh? Now just focus on the louder one; breathe in for four, hold two, out four. That's good; keep at it, my man."

  
It took a good while for Dipper to finally come down. Jeff stayed with him the entire time, slowly cutting off outside stimulus by wrapping him in his tentacles; taking great care not to touch him with any. The overall affect was much like a sensory deprivation chamber. It was a tactic he had used before; mostly on BEN when water was involved.

  
Jeff was so focused on calming Dipper he didn't notice the door open. Mabel did though, and looked up, and up, and up some more, until she was face to nothing with the Slenderman. He wasn't looking at her however, but at Jeff; who glared back with suspicion. He then looked down at Mabel and stepped aside, motioning for her to enter. She went in, not taking her eyes off him.

  
Only when Dipper was completely calm did Jeff let go of him. "I ain't gonna say somethin' like "don't be afraid" or horseshit like that. Bein' scared'll do ya a lot of good here. But I'll at least say ya got friends in there who'll get your back if shit goes down. So let's get in there, and hear what ol' Slendy-dendy has to say."

  
Mabel was sitting on a large couch when they came in, technically speaking; she was actually sitting on Laughing Jack, who had pulled her into his lap as soon as she came close. She didn't mind. Dipper sat down next to her and looked to see who was there. He was relieved to see Toby, who was quick to sit by Jeff, and Hoodie was fiddling with an old camera on a loveseat nearby. Masky was nowhere to be seen, however. At least not until Slenderman returned with him by his side. Dipper turned to Jeff, who stopped noogieing Toby long enough to explain.

  
"Since the two of ya are normal, for a definition of it, I'm bettin ya don't have any psychic powers. . ."

  
"Sometimes our allergies act up at the same time!" Mabel declared proudly.

  
Jeff raised a brow. "Weird, but not psychic. Anyways. . . all of us can hear Slender just fine, but in your case he needs a mouthpiece. That's where Masky comes in. He's been doin' it for longer than any of the proxies, so he's the most used to it."

  
"Indeed. Though I must admit Mr. Wright also transmits my voice most accurately."

  
The voice, surprisingly deep, startled them both. Dipper wished he had a notebook with him, so he could write down how Masky mimicked Slender's motions as the other spoke. Dipper decided to cut straight to the chase, rather than wonder about it. "So what do you want with us?"

  
"Answers. I want to know it all. From the start, if you could."

  
So Dipper told them everything; from the beginning of that first summer three years ago. He told them every significant thing that happened afterwards too. He even told them the insignificant things as well; like the time a juvenile Mothman took up residence in their garden shed. That ended when their septic tank burst. When he finished Jeff and Slender/Masky looked at each other for a long moment. Then Slender nodded, and Jeff grinned. He turned that grin on Dipper, eyes burning with strange light.

  
"So ya are a sensitive. I thought so. 'Specially after watchin' those vids ya made when ya were a kid. No ordinary human woulda survived halfa that shit. Lucky or not."

  
When he thought about it it made sense. Bill Cipher was his own thing entirely, but he shouldn't have even lived to meet him, or survived being possessed; what with how badly he'd been beaten. It didn't matter that Danny had gotten him to the hospital, the sheer fact he had bled internally AND suffered brain damage should have killed him. That wasn't even mentioning the sheer number of near death experiences he'd gotten away from. He still had nightmares about being turned into wood. That left one thing.

  
"What the heck is a sensitive and why is it important that I am one?"

  
"Sensitives naturally attract shit like this. If ya weren't one this'd all be a lot more confusing."

  
"Indeed. They are more open to the supernatural, and readily adapt to it. A complete lack of sensitivity would introduce more questions than answers regarding your apparent draw on the Under-realm."

  
"Only issue is that most sensitives are usually older than ya. Bein' in Gravity Falls prob'ly sped up your development. Hangin' around that ghost friend did ya some good too. Bein' a sensitive is what's drawin' all the monsters to ya. It's got nothin' to do with what's happenin', but the other stuff is prob'ly why the monsters're visible to everyone."

  
Dipper blinked, he touched the horn under his shirt. "As I'm sure BEN has told you, most creatures carry a glamour that hides them from the average human. Tools such as that horn you carry can allow others to see through the glamour. At a certain point in your development you will no longer need it to see them. Although I will admit I am surprised it works. An adder stone cannot be created by human hands normally."

  
He felt a little bit of pride at that. "Well it is a ghost's horn. But let's get back to the point; the barrier. More importantly why is it collapsing now? Bill tore a hole in reality; he caused the veil to fall apart and spilled both the nightmare realm and the Ghost Zone into our world. That alone should have done something more."

  
"Everythin' breaks. Some just take more time than others." Jeff said.

  
Slender chimed in. "There is a reason however. The barrier between the two realms has existed since the beginning. It is much thicker than the veil."

  
Mabel stopped tying ribbons in Laughing Jack's hair long enough to contribute. "Why's that?"

  
"I actually learned that one pretty recently, from a demon of all things. The Ghost Zone, as ya called it, is part of the Rift. It's the only part that ya don't need a door to get to, but it still functions the same as the rest of it; just makes it's own doors instead."

  
So that explained the natural portals. Such a thin barrier would tear easily, regardless of where the pressure was coming from. "So this Under-realm thing has been breaking down over the years? That's still pretty fast."

  
The room filled with sounds of agreement and discussion, Slender's deep voice echoing over the others. Dipper took the horn out, tracing his fingers along the copper wire. Three years to crack a wall that's been standing for eons, maybe longer? Impossible. Dipper started crossing off the list. Bill Cipher's mental body had been destroyed; his physical form was statue in the forest. Any allies he didn't kill are permanently trapped in the nightmare dimension. There was this Zalgo guy. He was a strong contender for the cause, but no one wanted to even consider him as a possibility; even Jeff's book refused to show anything on him, spewing ink and garbled nonsense when he looked.

  
So who, or what was tearing it down?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> when a sentient book keeps its mouth shut you know you're dealing with a bad dude


	25. Home on the Strange

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> aka: the chapter where mindprince talks about rocks. . . a lot.

Things were oddly quiet when Danny returned to the house; even the constant thrum of the pixies in the attic had gone. He sniffed through every corner, but it was like someone had hit a reset. The only sign that anything weird had happened at all was the numerous spells, and him.

  
Taking the chance he'd been given, Danny slipped through a portal back to Gravity Falls. He breathed a sigh of relief as he was surrounded by the aether rich air. It was like he had spent the last month in the desert, only to be thrown into the sea once more. Even his skin felt better, less itchy. He stretched luxuriously before setting off to patrol. Now that he knew one of those Gates opened right in his den, he made it a point to check for any other wanderers when he could.

  
A pile of stones greeted him when he landed on the island; one of several that the beavers would leave him. Ever since he shed his horn he found himself seeking out things to gnaw. The beavers started leaving the stones as offerings after he ate up one of their chainsaws. Now whenever he visited he found these stacks waiting for him. He sniffed around the stones, taking one or two that appealed to him; for some reason he only wanted to chew certain things.

  
He was just settling down for a nice stress gnaw on a lovely piece of shale when he felt a paw tap his wing. A fluffy beaver kit was plopped down beside him, a shard of something resting in it's paws. It was an earthy green color with a vaguely familiar energy to it. He flashed back to his parent's lab; a chunk of glowing greenish-black stone sitting in the open on a counter. He remembered touching it out of curiosity; blacking out from pain, and waking up hours later in his sister's room with her and his friend's looking on in worry. However this didn't feel like ectoranium (as his parents had called it; these days it was officially called spectrenium), not entirely. He didn't feel tired being near it, and the smell, well frankly it smelled amazing.

  
He held out a hand and the beaver gave him the stone. Cautiously he held it to his nose, faintly noticing the tingles of energy running to his core. He licked it. His ears and tail went straight up. It tasted even better than it smelled! He had chomped down half of it before the thought occurred that he should know where it came from.

  
Danny looked to see the beaver's eyes sparkling, a tiny grin on it's fuzzy face while it's tail thumped happily. Apparently the stone was meant as a gift, and seeing him actually eat it was the best compliment the little kit could have expected. "Do you remember where you got this?"

  
The beaver chattered happily and tugged his hand. Danny tossed the last bits back, thrilling in the buzz that it sent to his stomach. He kept to all fours, moving at a slow amble, so as not to outpace the happy little waddle of the beaver kit. They reached the main den site and the beaver waddled on, bouncing a little. The kit brought him to another pile; this one full of the same green stone as before. Danny was practically drooling at the sight.

  
The kit had ambled over to another beaver who was stacking more green stones up. It pointed to him and the two chattered noisily for several seconds. Danny ignored it all and, almost in a trance, sat by the stones and started eating. He chomped through half the pile before he felt full. After that he curled around it and went to sleep. The beavers seemed satisfied with the reaction and let him be; warning off any kits who were being a little too free with the power tools.

  
Danny woke up to a nasty headache. He groaned softly and pressed on his temples, slowly massaging his forehead. He stopped when he bumped against something that made him hiss in pain. Hoping to get some relief he trotted out to the water. He stopped at the edge and gazed at his reflection, waiting for the water to settle. He blinked, seeing a small lump of whitish fluff on his forehead, right where his shed scar had been. He raised a hand and touched it, more gently this time. A soft brush of velvet met his fingers. _'That's interesting. I wonder if those stones had anything to do with this.'_

  
He'd think about that later, right now a swim sounded like just the thing for his head. He tucked his wings in tight before submerging himself in the cold lake. At this time of day the Gobblewonker was sleeping on the lake bottom so he would be able to go about unmolested. He did go to the bottom however, just to check on the old monster.

  
He saw more of those stones buried in the mud, and he stopped to unbury them, weaving a net of lakeweed to carry them in; holding the net in his hind claws. It occurred to him as he snacked on one of the stones that the location was familiar.

  
It was the same place the island head had crashed! Danny looked at the stone with new wonder. It was time to talk to an expert, and he knew just where to go. Surfacing with his haul in claw he flew to the Northwest Manor.

  
~*~

  
"I ain't never seen nothin' like this afore!"

  
"It does kind of resemble spectrenium though, I can see that."

  
Danny licked the remaining water off while Pacifica and Fiddleford tested the stones. The Stans were still off on their ship, chasing who knows what. Without the weirdness expert around Danny went to the supernatural and scientific experts instead. What followed was hours of testing involving machines that would have had Tesla telling them to calm down. So far all they'd discovered was that it was some sort of crystal conglomeration with numerous inclusions of unknown minerals. That and it was definitely not related to spectrenium in any way; beyond having an affect on ghosts.

  
Pacifica pulled off the thick gloves she'd been wearing to mix a solution with a stone she crushed. The mixture was currently boiling on a burner. She sat on the floor by Danny to talk to him. "You said you found it where the island head died. Could it be pieces of a core?"

  
Danny dragged his tongue along one claw, delicately polishing it. "I thought about that on the way up here. But the island head wasn't a ghost to begin with. Even if it became one after death it would have still been there. Still water is really good at preserving spiritual energies. Besides if a ghost's core is destroyed it dissipates with them. Water or not there's no reason it should have been there if that's what it was."

  
Pacifica sighed, theory shot. She dropped the gloves in her lap and twirled her hair, thinking. Neither one spoke until a loud explosion rocked the room. Thick, oily smoke came spilling from the boiler and Danny rushed to open the windows. He coughed at the heavy stench from the smoke. Pacifica shut off the boiler and the smoke stopped coming. She jumped when Fiddleford burst through the cloud, goggles smeared black. "Hoo-wee, that was somethin' weren't it? Ya'll come check this out."

  
The hillbilly genius grabbed the now cooled boiler and tipped out a small disk of some kind of stone. Bizarrely, the stone had turned a reddish color and no longer smelled so appetizing. In fact, it smelled more like the aftermath of a tainted soul collapsing on itself. Fiddleford picked it up none too gently with some tongs and turned to Danny. "Could ya'll make some ice fer me?"

  
Danny nodded and made a small crystal. Fiddleford took it. "Watch this. I saw it happenin' while the stone was a'meltin'."

  
The crystal was placed on top of the stone. It began hissing and bubbling; spitting a thick brown ooze that stank so badly even the humans in the room could smell it. Pacifica quickly put her gloves on, grabbed a sample vial and scooped up the ooze. The crystal had vanished completely. "Neat, huh?"

  
"Yeah, real neat." Danny said as he hung his head out the window and tried his hardest not to puke on one of the peacocks in the garden. He gulped down the cool air until his stomach settled; then returned to the matter at hand. "Okay this has all been interesting, but what does it have to do with it apparently jump-starting my horn's regrowth?"

  
"Oh that. That's just because it was full'a somethin' ya needed." Fiddleford picked up the stone disk, only to drop it again when Danny shouted.

  
"WAIT, THAT WAS IT?!"

  
Fiddleford rested an elbow on the table, knocking over a burner; Pacifica rushed to shut it off and put out the flame. "Eeyup. Crystallized ectoplasm. Just the thin' for a ghost regrowin' a horn!"

  
Danny sat, stunned and confused. Like a dog that tried to play with it's reflection only to be ignored. _'I guess it makes sense. I've never really thought about all the things ectoplasm can do or be. So if it can turn into a rock it can be a rock. A really tasty rock.'_

  
Pacifica lightly shifted the vial, watching its contents move about. "So the original stone's ectoplasm. Heated, it turns into this red stone, that reacts with ghost energies to create this goop."

  
"So how does any of that relate?"

  
Fiddleford laughed, slapping a knee. Then he smiled cheekily and said with a shrug. "I dunno! We'll keep testin' it though. These reactions've got me all kindsa curious."

  
~*~

  
Danny flew back to the island empty handed. For the sake of science he had to leave the rest of the ectocrystals behind, but he didn't mind so much. Now that he knew what the stones were he wanted to find out why there were so many on the island. Was it just Gravity Falls that caused them or could they happen in other places?

  
So he headed back to the lake, ready to collect more, when he spotted the sheen of the crystals on the beach. The beavers had gathered a heap of them while he was gone. With the help of some more lakeweed, Danny collected a few sample packages which he would deliver to Fenton Works and Vlad in the morning. "After a snack."

  
With that he chowed down on the remaining crystals and curled up to sleep it off. He woke up the next morning to the sound of a boat's engine. He yawned and stood to greet Pacifica as she jumped from the still running boat and ran through the water. She was red faced and panting by the time she reached him, and collapsed in an exhausted heap at his feet. "What's wrong? You look like you ran the whole way here."

  
She gasped harshly. Danny created a veil of mist and gently looped it over her shoulders. Pacifica pulled one corner in her mouth and drank it as it condensed into water. In between sips she explained. "That disk we made? The red one?"

  
"Kind of hard to forget. I've still got the smell in my nose."

  
"Well we let it sit during the night. I heard some noise this morning. At first I thought Fiddleford was doing some hamboning or whatever, but when I opened my door the stone was there! I put it back and as soon as I looked away I heard it again. That thing rolled off the table and all the way to my room!"

  
"Okay, what?"

  
"I know right? So we tested it more and it rolled to my vanity and on the mirror. When I went to grab it again the rock changed color! And get this, my mirror changed too!"

  
"Like a portal? What color did it turn? What did you see through it?" This little rock was getting more bizarre by the second. Danny almost felt sick as he unconsciously grabbed a crystal and just let it sit in his mouth, like a lolly.

  
"Not quite; it was more. . . ripply. The rock turned light purple. The only thing I saw through it was a farmhouse in the middle of a field. The whole place was a ghost town. Oops, sorry." She blushed.

  
Danny chuckled. "No offense taken. Anything else happen after?"

  
"No, Fiddleford knocked it off with a stick and it all went back to normal. As long as we keep it on the mirror it doesn't move. We've been pretty careful about touching it too."

  
Danny lay down, claws drumming the slightly hard mud. As he thought he scooped up a handful and plastered it over the pedicle (that was the word for it, according to the books on deer he'd read); the impromptu mask helped ease the itch from the growing horn. "I'm taking the stones to some friends in Amity Park; I'll have to let them know about this too. Although this all sounds rather familiar. Was there anything else?"

  
"No that was it. I wanted to tell you asap since I didn't know if you were leaving soon."

  
Well that explained the rush. He noticed she had drank the scarf and wove her a new one; she sighed as he draped it over her. "If only there was a way to make a fabric with this, it would sell like crazy."

  
Afterward Pacifica spent some time helping him look for more of the ectocrystals. As he had said they found more in the lake and the underground caverns than elsewhere; the still water in these places holding the energy at cool enough temperatures for it to crystallize. They did find some in the deeper parts of the forest. Interestingly, these areas had been places where Danny had expelled a lot of energy. They found the most land bound crystals in parts that had been strongly affected by Weirdmaggedon; a lot of the inanimate things Bill had transformed had formations in them.

  
Danny wrapped these up as well, muttering as he did so. "So it's not just ghost-related. Anywhere that's had its field messed with could do. That's troubling."

  
"Yeah. Well, I hope you can find something about these." Pacifica bundled all the deliveries in a large box she brought from the mansion; tying it with rope so Danny could carry it and still keep his hands free. Danny wanted to make the deliveries quick so he could come back and be in a safe spot while he waited out his horn. With the samples secure Pacifica gave him a thumbs up and headed home.

  
_'First stop; Fenton Works.'_


	26. The Foundation Arrives

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I still don't know when and when not to capitalize foundation so bear with me. feel free to tell me too.

There was surprisingly little chaos when Danny phased through the wall with a crate. All that happened was a request of his reason for being there, and now he was sitting on the crate while talking to the lead of the Spectral Geology section. Said lead was a young lady who graduated straight to the job after college, and despite it being such a new field she had an impressive grasp of it already. At her request he opened the crate and let her look at the crystals inside.

  
Eventually the woman's enthusiasm brought his friends out of hiding; curious to see what all the fuss was. Tucker greeted him with a fist bump and Sam tolerated a nuzzle from him. He caught them up on the reason for his visit, and they too became interested.

  
"There's just one thing you should know about these." Danny said, pulling the notes he had gotten from Pacifica out to show. "For some reason heating them causes them to turn into this odd stone."

  
He produced the Dalv co device and played a video he had also gotten from Pacifica; sent as he was en route. The video was just a short clip of Fiddleford and Pacifica messing with the stone disk; removing it from the mirror and playing keep away as it tried to make contact. Sam made him play it a few times, then read over the notes; each time her brows drew closer. Danny felt frost down his spine at the growing darkness in her face. "Sam?"

  
"You found all of these just in Gravity Falls?"

  
"Yes? They aren't hurting anything. I didn't even know about them until the beavers dug them up."

  
"It's not what they are now. This red stone. . . it's, just wait here." She and Tucker rushed off to another part of the lab. While waiting Danny took the chance to munch on a some more of the tasty crystals, sending the lab tech into a minor fit.

  
Sam returned with single black folder, marked [RESTRICTED] in bright red. He took it from her. It was nearly empty, except for a couple of pages and a several photos of larger version of the same kind of stone. He held the photo in a shaking claw. "What is. . . ?"

  
"SCP-093. Everything you told us matches the file. It's a good thing those two didn't go through the mirror. Danny, I'm going to need to contact the foundation about this, you know."

  
He nodded solemnly. Sam left the file with him while she went to make the call. He read through it, paying special attention to the tests; at least the ones that were available. On reading that recovered materials weren't included he decided to go one deeper. With the Dalv co phone wrapped in his tail he dialed a number he'd been given before Jeff had left; a direct line to Slenderman's manor.

  
The phone rang more than ten times before someone picked up. Judging from the level of noise in the background it simply hadn't been heard. Danny didn't recognize the voice that answer; a young girl. "Hello, this is Sally. Everyone's yelling right now."

  
He laughed silently at the honest greeting. "My name's Danny. Is Jeff still there?"

  
The girl's voice brightened. "Uh-huh! I'll go get him!"

  
He listened to the rapid pat of bare feet away from the phone, a spritely voice, and then the light scrape of points on tile. The phone rattled loudly in his ear before that familiar smooth gruff spoke. "Hey, what's up?"

  
"I need you to do me a favor. Can you get ahold of the complete file for SCP-093?"

  
"Pfft, can a bear fuckin' take your head off? Course I can! Where ya at an' I'll bring it to ya."

  
"Fenton Works in Amity Park. Can you really get here?"

  
"I can get anywhere there's a big enough hole. Be right with ya."

  
Danny hung up and reread the file, idly chewing on a crystal.

  
~*~

  
Even with the security measures kept in place every second of the day, Jeff had no trouble getting into the file room. In fact he came out of one of the filing cabinets, scaring the life out of a poor intern who had been too close. He got a good laugh out of that. Then he got to work.

  
The filing system was haphazard at best; what with the constant need to alter files. However, testing on 093 had ended ages ago; which meant the file was most likely to be in the right place. He walked back to the older cabinets which were usually reserved for SCPs that had been terminated or otherwise rendered harmless, and started going through them. He found it lodged in the back behind the file of Anomalous Ducks, one of which was hiding in there and quacked at him (even though he was pretty sure it had been a flamingo). He carefully extracted it and dusted it off.

  
As he opened the door to leave an alarm started up. The loudspeaker crackled and a dull, monotone voice announced. "Attention, possible Keter class entity sighted in Amity Park, Minnesota. All Nine-tails units gather in the air yard. Dr. Bright will be overseeing the mission."

  
"Oh fuck me runnin'! Why now?" Jeff just about made it into the Rift when a suited up Ninetailed fox agent grabbed him and hauled him along. "What the hell, man?!"

  
"Your tracker was in the building. Dr. Bright wants you to come as well, sir."

  
"Fine, but quit draggin' me. This damn shirt's had enough punishment."

  
Reluctantly he followed the agent out to the tarmac, where the unit was boarding a single stealth chopper. He tucked the file under his hoodie and joined them, stifling a frustrated sigh as Dr. Bright proceeded to stare him down for the entirety of the trip. He half wished the guy was a tamarin again, then he could just huck him out the chopper and be done with him. Sadly, he had made good on his name with his last body switch; landing himself in the body of former circus strongman who died in an accident. _'At least I can still make fun of him. Worst he could do is rip my head off.'_

  
Danny had been dozing, sleeping off the energy drop from processing the crystals, when the ruckus started. He briefly registered Sam yelling for him to go invisible as the door of the wing was busted down; half a dozen men in full riot gear entering, guns ready. Orders were shouted and people were evacuated until the only ones remaining were Danny, invisible on all spectrums thanks to the quick warning, and Sam; phone still in hand. Though that number rose to three when Jazz burst into the room demanding to know what was going on.

  
Dr. Bright stepped to the front of the group. "Calm down miss. We just want to do an inspection of your workplace."

  
Jazz wasn't buying it. "No dice, buddy. I know you guys are Foundation personnel. We have a strict agreement when it comes to working with you. Now let me address my employees first, before you wreck the place."

  
She went to Sam first, having seen the phone. "Did you call these guys?"

  
"I was talking to Dr. Gears to send some information Danny got, but I didn't call anyone else. He didn't say anything about a team either."

  
With that Jazz rounded on Bright again, that particular Fenton fire in her eyes. "So you just decided to bust in here for no reason, then?"

  
Bright was backing up, trying to put a Ninetails between him and the angry woman. "We do have a reason, Miss Fenton. We received intel that a dangerous creature may be in this building. We simply came to contain it before it caused any trouble."

  
Jazz continued to glare; the heat of it causing some of the agents to even drop their weapons and step back. "And just where in here would we even keep a "dangerous creature"?"

  
Suddenly the crate Danny had been standing on shifted, causing his foot to slip off. Startled, he dropped the invisibility. The agents spotted him simultaneously and raised their weapons. "Keter class located, prepare to engage!"

  
"Like fuck ya will!"

  
The venomous hiss of a shout stunned all of them; an astute listener could even hear a sudden silence in the other wings. Jeff shoved his way to the front and turned on Dr. Bright, who visibly shuddered. The doctor made himself look intimidating but there was still a spark of fear. "SCP-4140, stand aside!"

  
"Fuck off with your number shit, asshat. Lemme ask ya question. Ya remember the agreement I made when I first got in?"

  
"Yes."

  
"Tell me it, all of it. Right now or you're gonna need another body real quick."

  
On seeing the way Jeff's pupils narrowed Dr. Bright gulped and quickly rattled off the entirety of the contract the SCP and Dr. Kondraki had written up. Every employee of the foundation, no matter their ranking, had to memorize the agreement upon signing up; anyone who failed to was immediately relegated to D-class duty. Jeff raised an invisible brow at the jumble of words. He slapped Bright across the face to shut him up.

  
"Alright ya remember. Now shut the fuck up and listen good. From now on this guy," He jerked a thumb towards Danny. "Is officially on my list of guys not to fuck with. Ya try and catch him again and I'll burn your whole damn facility to the ground."

  
Dr. Bright raised a finger to argue as the agreement only covered Safe to Euclid class and this was possibly Keter. . . or higher. Jeff grabbed it and broke it, just barely holding down a snarl. "I don't give a shit what ya were gonna say. Your rules don't apply to him. I'm only sayin' so _he_ can update my file."

  
Bright followed his gaze to where a second chopper was landing. Dr. Kondraki, with butterflies and his own team in tow, jumped down and pushed past Bright to where Danny still stood on the crate. His wings snapped out, vibrating as a low growl left his lips. The butterflies swarmed him, but did not attack; instead landing in neat groups on his tail and wings. Apparently this had been what Kondraki was hoping for and gave a belly laugh that got Jeff smiling.

  
Jeff kicked Bright in the shin and turned, giving a flying leap to land on Kondraki's shoulder. The doctor stumbled a little. "Oof! Sorry if I gave the wrong impression. Jeff contacted me on the way over, and I had to rush out before Bright over there locked you up."

  
The soft fluttering of the butterflies calmed Danny, and he slowly settled down; curling up on the crate in way that wouldn't disturb the little creatures, one of which seemed determined to land on his ear. "So what exactly does this "agreement" mean?"

  
"Basically means I can decide if somethin' falls under the whole abnormal thing. If I do that then the foundation can't lock it up unless it's a serious problem. Ya ain't a bad guy so they can't bother ya. 'cept for addin' ya to my file as an accessory. Most of the Under-realm is listed in there."

  
Danny tilted his head and made a curious chirp. "So I'm safe?"

  
"Yup. Unless ya make some monumental fuck up that I can't fix. Then ya pretty much have no choice. Thing only works if I got some kinda control on the situation. Of course that won't be a problem with ya; I know ya do the right thing. . . most of the time."

  
Kondraki fished out a recorder and gave Jeff a shove, knocking him to the floor with surprising grace. "All I really need is a short interview; name, some of your abilities, what you do. Things like that. Jeff while I'm doing this can you put together some of those stones for testing? Dr. Gears mentioned grabbing some so we might as well do it while we're here."

  
Though he grumbled, Jeff did as he was asked. The Spectral Geologist put up a huge stink at first, but was very quickly silenced by a glowing stare from Jeff's false eye and a faint burst of Sigma. Just enough to get the woman and no one else. Once subdued she silently collected enough crystals for a battery of tests. Jeff directed her to help pack the samples and waited for Kondraki to finish collecting his information.

  
When he was done Jeff pulled him aside to talk. "Okay Kon-kon, serious business time. Ya'll had any containment breaches recently? Big ones?"

  
"No, not since you caused that safe class breach on your last visit. Still trying to clean 999's goo up, by the way."

  
Jeff crossed his arms, nodding in mock understanding. "Okay, okay. Then explain this!"

  
He thrust a photo of the arctic monster in his face. Before leaving the manor he had BEN retrieve the data for the picture, just in case. Kondraki's glasses nearly slipped off his face as his jaw dropped. He took the picture with shaking hands. "This can't be."

  
"Oh it is, big guy. I've read the whole description, but even without it I'd recognize my baby anywhere. That's 1128, alright. And if that thing's loose then I'd say it's a matter of time before some big fucker gets out."

  
"You're right, of course. I'd like for you to come back to the Foundation to help look for any potential breaches. I'd like your friend to come too if you think he could help."

  
"Of course I'm right. I ain't wrong with this shit. But yeah, I bet he could pick up on some shit I can't. I gotta take care of a couple a things first." He broke off from Kondraki and checked on the geologist he'd controlled. She was sitting in what he thought was the kitchen, nursing a glass of water; she gave him a dirty look when she saw him and he backed away sheepishly. He hastily apologized then went upstairs to where he had seen Sam go.

  
She was leaning on the desk in what he assumed was an office of some sort, massaging her brow. The phone lay a few feet away, dial tone blaring as she had clearly been cut off. He leaned on the door jam. "Sorry 'bout that. They shut off outside lines in the event of a keter sightin'. If it was important you'll get a callback. On another note; you're the Manson girl, right?"

  
"Yep, that's me. What do you want?" She groaned.

  
"Here. Danny asked me to get this for him, but I figure ya can get more outta it." He dropped the dusty file on the table by her elbow. "They ain't messed with this in years. If your little ghost rocks can add to this mystery then go nuts with 'em."

  
She eyed the file dubiously before snatching it up and reading it. "Huh, so the mirror is standard. Now that most of the research is already done for us, the mineralogy lab can focus on making the connections. Thanks, Jeff!"

  
She smiled genuinely and Jeff smirked back. When he came back most of the chaos had been cleared out and the only person left in the room was Danny, who was trying not to laugh. Judging by the amount of yelling and threatening happening outside it wasn't hard to figure out Jazz was the cause of it. He strolled over to the endigo, now gasping for air on his back, he leaned over him. "So, think I can ask ya a favor?"

  
"Sure, depends on the favor." He giggled a bit.

  
"Kon-kon thinks ya might be able to pick up on some potential for breaches. Somethin' a mine got loose and now they're worried about somethin' worse gettin' out."

  
Danny rolled to his stomach, tail curling around himself. "I don't know. They wanted to capture me just now."

  
Jeff flopped over his back, making him huff and jerk his wings free. "Ya don't gotta worry about that. The most they'll do if ya go is some basic tests, medical stuff; no cuttin' needed. 'Sides I'll give ya the tour. Whattya say?"

  
A few minutes later Danny was following him out to the the choppers. He wanted to fly but Kondraki and Jeff convinced him to ride inside. "It's all procedures, Danny. They gotta make it at least look like they got ya under control."

  
He just sighed and stared out the window, wanting so badly to be out there flying.


	27. Touring the Facilities and Picking Up Slack

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> title comes from the Cake song Short Skirt, Long Jacket

The Foundation grounds were expansive, and this wasn't even the main site.

  
Both choppers had been greeted with a contingency of soldiers, all armed. Danny tried his best to look non-threatening. The soldiers raised their weapons, but dropped them just as quickly when the chopper door filled with bristling tendrils for just a second. The soldiers hurriedly recollected their weapons and saluted as Jeff and Dr. Kondraki exited last. The three filed past, keeping Danny protectively between them.

  
Just like Jeff had promised, none of the tests were invasive. In fact, they were almost mundane. All the researchers had wanted was rundown of his basic abilities and his diet. There were a few tests that were a little personal, but he was assured it was all health related. They wanted him to feel welcome as one of Jeff's allies, and that meant caring for both physical and mental health as best as possible. Though he did get a chuckle out of the medical officers' faces when they drew his blood. That quickly devolved into a discussion of just how it worked and what purpose it served.

  
He had a feeling a lot of the people here were going to be like that.

  
Jeff's tour proved him right. The killer took him through the majority of the facility; even sneaking him through the Keter class containment. They stopped in front of one in particular. There was a single viewing window high up, partially covered in some sort of brownish-red. . . stuff. He was startled when a jet of water washed the gunk away, letting him see in better. Danny pressed close to the window, only vaguely surprised to find he couldn't phase through it. The floor of the room was coated with more of that stuff, and a trio of people in hazard gear were cleaning it.

  
Every now and then one of them would shout something and the other two would immediately turn to whatever was standing in the corner. Following their gaze Danny shifted to a far corner of the window for a better look. What he saw was. . . rather underwhelming. "Is that a giant peanut?"

  
A door slid open behind them. "If only. It'd be much easier containing a giant peanut."

  
Dr. Kondraki came up beside him. "That is SCP-173; the start of it all."

  
Danny turned to face him, tail wagging curiously. "How so?"

  
"This place used to be a lot smaller. Just a little research lab looking out for anomalous activity. Most days we found nothing bigger than the occasional blip on the radar. Then one day someone, they aren't around anymore, picked up some rumors of a so called killer statue. We sent a few guys in and found that "peanut". We brought it in and through trial and error, lots of error, we figured out how to keep it here.

  
"That thing planted the idea that bigger things were happening so the big brains of this place decided to expand the facility. Years later it became this. And it's still growing. Our archives extend well into the thousands. Though most of those are not registered. I don't control what gets what number. That's why Jeff here is 4140 as opposed to a 3300 designation which is where we have gaps."

  
"So is that where I'm going to end up?"

  
"Maybe, maybe not. It all depends on the information we've got. For now you'll most likely be labeled SCP-4140-d; lumped in with Jeff's file since he's claimed responsibility for you, more or less."

  
Danny wasn't sure if he was disappointed or happy at that fact. A shout of alarm distracted him from that. He looked back to see that one of the men was dead, head twisted alarmingly; the other two had backed against the far wall and were staring at the thing without blinking. Seeing this Kondraki pressed the intercom and another button. "A death has occurred in SCP-173's containment unit, please exit while maintaining eye contact. A cleaning crew will be along shortly to replace you."

  
He started to growl, ready to give this doctor a tongue lashing over the lost life, only to be interrupted by Jeff jumping on his back again and leaning over to be in his face. "Easy bud. It pissed me off too when I first got here. Thing is, these guys are the bottom fuckin' rung, D-class; the whole lot are made up of the worst society's got on offer. Criminals of all sorts."

  
Still just a little perturbed by lack of concern over lost life, Danny let Jeff steer him out of the viewing room and to another corridor upstairs. Danny was snapped out of his reverie by the sound of machinery. He perked his ears towards the sounds.

  
The room they entered had no doors or any visible security measures. At first Danny thought the massive, wall spanning array of gears and metal was a breach. That idea was thrown out as soon as he watched a scientist walk right up to it, insert a collection of tools, and turn a few knobs. The sounds kicked up a notch and from a door he hadn't seen at first came a hiss and thunk. The door opened and the scientist pulled out a single multitool; an elegant combination of the tools that had gone in.

  
Needless to say, Danny was instantly fascinated. Jeff chuckled as he dashed up to the machine, fluttering to and fro to look at it, and in it as well; phasing through multiple times. He perched on the insert box, tail wagging with all the excitement of an inventor in their element. "What is this thing? It's amazing!"

  
"SCP-914, oh so creatively named The Clockworks. Ya put somethin' in and dependin' on these knobs here. It either makes somethin' nice outta it, makes ya somethin' similar, or if ya put in on 'rough', completely wrecks its shit. I used this to make my eye."

  
"How strange." Danny said, his voice echoing from inside as he had phased halfway through it. "All these gears and belts for such a simple purpose. I wonder if it could be streamlined somehow. . . I swear I've seen a design like this somewhere."

  
He backed out, hindquarters slipping off and making him fall. Danny took it gracefully; shaking off the dust he brought with him. As Jeff lead him from the room, Danny kept looking back at the massive beast of gears. He may no longer relate to his parents but, like it or not, he inherited their blood. That same blood was itching to see just how that monster worked. Jeff tugged his ear to get his attention. "Well? Ya catch anythin' to be worried about?"

  
_'I knew I forgot something! Okay think, Danny. Did anything feel out of place? Other than everything you've seen today. Oh! That sleeping girl!'_

  
"Something felt off about that girl. The one who was being kept asleep. What was her number, 239?"

  
Jeff looked alarmed. He grabbed Danny's cloak and nearly dragged him back to the containment in question. On arrival he ran to the unit's attached viewing room and kicked the door in; sending the three researchers screaming away from the door. "Calm the fuck down it's just me. Ya'll noticed anythin'? Anythin' at all?"

  
There was a lot of mixed responses. Danny ignored them and trotted to a bank of screens. One in particular drew his attention. He recognized it from Dipper's stay in the hospital; a brain monitor. It looked like this one was being used to monitor REM states just like Dipper's had been. Below the screen a slot spat out reams of paper; recordings of the SCPs mental state. Danny had learned to read this, but it still took him some time to recall what each rise and fall meant.

  
The lines were mostly calm, but in the more recent recordings he could see more and more peaks in activity; almost as though she were waking up. It was pretty clear from the amount of drugs in the room that that was not supposed to be happening. He pointed it out and the room went into panic again. Danny wisely backed away to let it happen. Jeff joined him shortly. "So, that's a bad thing."

  
"Very. I don't know much about 239. Her file calls her "The Reality Warper", and from what I got she can change shit with a thought. She's been in that coma since before I got here. Never heard of her wakin' up though. Can't imagine that's good."

  
The two agreed to get out of the way for now, and Danny returned for a second sweep of the facility; having been too distracted by everything to really check. This time he found more pockets of the energy he associated with the Under-realm; Jeff noted every single one down. Even the smallest. They looked at each other, and it didn't take a mind reader to know they were thinking the same things.

  
The rips were getting wider, and the girl may be drawing them in. Either way the Under-realm was being pulled closer to the Over-realm. Both had the chilling thought of the girl being used as a doorway. With that idea in mind Jeff brought Danny to the containment of objects and people alike with similar powers. In each one he caught the scent. Even more disturbingly he caught that scent coming from the mirror used to contain SCP-093.

  
When Jeff reported that information it resulted in Kondraki collecting all the ectocrystals; with the order that Danny dispose of them, which had him licking his lips at the order. Kondraki brought the test samples back for him to snack on while he got a ride back to Fenton Works. The crystals were gone by the time he returned, and he laughed.

  
Danny was far more enthusiastic on the way back because Kondraki let him fly alongside the chopper. He claimed it was to study his wing structure and flight, but Jeff had told him the guy was a softy so he knew it was because he felt bad about keeping him inside so much. Jazz met them outside with the crate of ectocrystals packed backed up and ready. She hugged Danny when he landed. "Diane was really disappointed to give them back but she tends to put safety first."

  
An explosion of smoke plumed out the back, followed by a raucous "Whoo!" Jazz frowned. "Unlike most of the Spiritual Chemistry guys."

  
Danny cheered, glad to have such tasty treats back in his possession. Kondraki put a hand on his shoulder. "Just a second there. The Foundation is going to need a little favor from you."

  
He handed Danny a black tube, about the size of a pen, with a blinking light and what looked like a grenade pin on one end. "This is a silent alarm. If you find any other crystals that have become 093s pull the tab and it'll send a signal to our facilities. Then we'll send a team to collect it. Starting with the one originally reported."

  
"That one's easy. I can get it to you in no time. That is, if I have permission to open a portal."

  
Kondraki considered it. "Best not to. The report we got said that the Holy Tears was produced by contact with the energy you made. There's no telling what would happen if we exposed it to an environment composed entirely of the same energy."

  
Danny paled at the thought. "Right, air delivery it is."

  
Jeff crowded in to say goodbye. "I gotta get back below. Prob'ly shoulda gone back sooner."

  
Kondraki went back in the chopper and headed off. Danny stuck around long enough to make sure all of the crystals made it back in the crate; as well as seeing if any 093 instances had been created in his absence. Afterwards he headed back to Gravity Falls to collect the Northwest Manor instance.


	28. The Morality of Mortality

Jeff returned to the Under-realm via the door of Fenton Works. He chose to exit a little early; just a little bit concerned for what he might come back to. After all, Mabel and Laughing Jack were getting on like a house on fire when he left, which meant there was probably glitter paint everywhere, and Dipper had been ready to grill them for every last secret they had; he'd probably get it too.

  
What he came back to was a surprising level of calm. There had been some havoc, judging from the confetti scattered around, and the fact that Mabel and Laughing Jack were passed out on the couch. He sighed and flopped down on the opposite end, careful not to disturb them.

  
"You've had fun." The voice echoed slightly in his head, pushing away the headache that had been about to pounce. He cracked an eye open to see Slenderman perched on the easy chair across from him, legs crossed like the consummate businessman he dressed as.

  
"That's one way to put it."

  
"How bad is it on the surface?"

  
He really wished he hadn't asked that. The headache started creeping back in as soon as he said it. He let out a loud snarl, piling all the stress of the day into it. Slenderman leaned back in the chair; fingers pressed together. "That bad, I see. Go rest. We'll discuss this more in the morning. For now the children are to remain here."

  
Jeff didn't have the energy to argue. He hauled his exhausted carcass off the couch and schlepped, not to his room, but to the nest in Toby's room. At least, he hoped it was there. He opened the door softly and gave a short praise that it was. From what he could see it had been added to as well. He tossed off his hoodie and climbed in. When nothing could be heard but soft snoring from the pile, Slenderman appeared in the room.

  
He did nothing beyond gently touching Jeff's face with a tentacle and shaking his head. What was it about this particular person that got under his skin like nothing else? Even so much as to make him change his habits? Then again, Jeff wasn't human. Perhaps that was it. He too was fascinated by the mystery of him. Though he knew slightly more, particularly that Jeff was something similar to him; beyond that he was just as much in the dark. And Jeff had made no moves to clear up those mysteries.

  
So many questions surrounded him; much more than just what he was. Why was he so protective of children? It had to be more than just being an orphan, and for that matter what had happened to convent? The way he talked about it it just vanished off the face of the earth; was it in the Rift somewhere?

  
The thought of those children inevitably lead, as it always did, to their fights. Jeff wasn't human, even one who didn't know him personally could see that in his logic; the way he interacted with the world. He thought nothing of killing humans by the score, yet he recognized that what he was doing was wrong. He acknowledged his actions as sinful yet made no move to redeem himself; as others would. This simultaneous lack of morals and knowledge of it let Jeff enjoy their fighting to the fullest. He had no qualms over the destruction he might cause, nor who may be caught in the crossfire. Yet he took special care to ensure children kept their distance.

  
On the subject of morals, all his proxies had accepted their nature; yet they still felt remorse over their tasks. More than once he has listened to Tim's sobs of loss. The pain of regret at being unable to save a friend. The way he blamed himself for that loss. He's seen the wistful looks of Eyeless Jack as he watches the people live their lives; longing for a chance to go back to what he was. They all had their wants and wishes. All except Jeff. He seemed to live for nothing more than fear and the slaughter of those who threatened the young.

  
And now, just when he thought he was figuring it out, these Pines twins appear and throw a wrench into everything. They weren't children by far; the oldest human Jeff has ever answered the call of was a 14 year old girl on the run from a pedophile neighbor. These two were older and yet he hasn't hesitated to reach out to them. It couldn't just be the boy's sensitivity. Jeff had interacted with plenty of them in his time. Perhaps he was merely over-complicating matters.

  
At his heart Jeff was a Fear; he acted and thought in ways that pertained to this. As the fear of the abnormal he would, of course, make little sense to others; even if he did sometimes seem coherent. In the end his motives were his own, and no force in the universe could make sense of them. Slenderman exited his home to walk through his domain. Sometimes wondering was useless, sometimes it was better to simply accept things as they came.

  
"Perhaps that is all I can do in this situation. You certainly bring some strange things in your wake, Jeffery. And I can't say I dislike it."

  
One would think he even reveled in it, considering the efforts he went to to know where the other was at any given time. In fact, his sending of Tim and Brian to watch the twins had been a lie; what he wanted was to know what Jeff was doing. If one asked he would claim that he was simply keeping tabs on a potential threat, and the claim did hold water. Slenderman was not blind; he could see just how much the residents liked and listened to him. It was the reason why he trusted Jeff to give orders, but he was still paranoid enough to think that a shift in loyalty could happen.

  
"Just cuz they like me don't mean ya ain't the leader, ya know."

  
Truly startled, Slenderman lost his grip on reality, jumping a few feet away before getting control and returning to his place. Behind him Jeff watched with a bemused expression, silently chalking it up as one of his favorite moments. He waited until Slenderman calmed down before approaching. Jeff knew what the other was thinking; it had been that way since he first started visiting the manor, and was one of the real reasons he never stayed. If Slender felt he was a threat to his authority then he wouldn't take charge unless he was asked. It was a small thing, but it did seem to help.

  
The Watcher let out a sigh. "I suppose."

  
Jeff thumped his arm lightly. "It ain't a lie. Ya did all the work gettin' 'em all together. Ya gave them a roof over their heads and food to eat. Ya gave them another life. Even if ya were the reason their old life is gone, ya done your best to give them better. I may be able to help now and then but you're the one they're gonna turn to when shit hits the fan."

  
Slender perked up at those words. He felt Jeff extend his own tendrils and responded in kind, gently twining them around each other. He let Jeff lead him to an open area where the canopy was thin. There the Fear directed him to look up. Bright streaks of light darted across the sky; a meteor shower. The stars, second only to humans, were Slender's favorite thing to see, and the one thing guaranteed to melt his worries.

  
He chuckled, Jeff felt a little melty himself at the sound. "Yet another of your mysteries. An embodiment of fear who knows how to alleviate the fears of others."

  
"Just cuz I sound like a country bumpkin and I drop more Gs than a pimp in a strip club don't mean I'm stupid." Jeff said.

  
Slender's chuckle bubbled to full laughter, a jagged slit opening to let out the sound. Jeff smiled at the sound. The two of them remained there for the next few hours, just watching the falling stars in silence. At one point Slender settled at the base of a tree and Jeff climbed in his lap.

  
Their tendrils remained entwined the whole time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and we end the first half with a quiet moment between misfit monsters.


	29. Insert Disc Two

Morning came to the Under-realm as it always did; with a slow paling of the black sky to pale dawn purple, and the rising of it's midnight sun. Night never really left the Under-realm, and that was just how it's inhabitants preferred it. Dipper didn't wake quite as peacefully, jumping out of bed because he didn't recognize where he was. He was about to run out of the room to look for Mabel when his eyes passed the window. Dipper relaxed when he saw the Slenderman and Jeff approaching; reminding him that he spent the night in the manor. Calm now, he left the room and headed downstairs to the living, where he remembered Mabel conking out on the couch.

  
Sure enough she was still there; with the clown as a mattress. He crept past them and opened the door; waving to Jeff as the two entered. He didn't miss the way Slender's shoulders relaxed as he observed the room. Jeff just patted his wrist and went upstairs to start waking the house up. Dipper nudged his sister awake and the two of them followed Slender to the kitchen.

  
As the others slowly filtered in, lured by the smells of breakfast, Dipper was reminded of mealtimes at the Mystery Shack. Whenever possible Soos would invite all their friends over, turning a simple meal into a noisy affair that never failed to cheer him up. It was much the same here. Laughing Jack took a seat by Mabel, the two had very similar personalities; even if Laughing Jack's fun was more homicidal in nature. They both shared a love of causing a mess, usually with obscene amounts of glitter involved.

  
Sleepy chatter rose around the table to the sound of sizzling bacon, and Jeff sat beside Dipper. He didn't look at him, instead watching Slenderman make breakfast with a look Dipper had seen many times before; mostly on Mabel. He leaned in and whispered, "You like him, huh?"

  
To his credit, Jeff managed not to fling himself out of his seat. Though he still went a little pink around the ears; giving himself away. Dipper smiled. "I won't bother you with it. You two seem pretty suited for each other; at least as far as I know."

  
"Maybe. But I don't think it'd work; we kinda like fightin' too much."

  
"So? That's just how you two do things. Ever read 'Howl's Moving Castle'? Those two would fight constantly, it's just how they liked it."

  
Jeff made a mental note to pick that one up, then winced mentally, thinking of the stash of books he had yet to read under his bed. In fact, he saw Dipper pull one of them out from his vest (did he even own a jacket?) and start reading. It was one of his books on magickal history, particularly the one on demonic involvement. Judging from the look on his face, Dipper was completely taken by it. "Ya can borrow that if ya want. I don't mind."

  
"Oh sorry! I didn't even realize that room was yours. They just put me there."

  
He flapped his hand at him. "Don't be, I barely use that room when I'm here. I mostly just use it to stash neat shit I find when I'm out."

  
"Like what?"

  
"Honestly? Nothin' ya would find interestin'. Mostly just pretty rocks and feathers and shit like that."

  
"Jeff's just a naked magpie." Tim said, as he set out the plates and silverware. The remark was met with the kind of warm laughter and half-hearted glare that Dipper would see if someone poked fun at him or Mabel.

  
_'Wow, I've only been here for a day and it already feels like another home.'_

  
After breakfast he expected to get down to business and discuss a plan. Instead Slender took everyone to the Over-realm for a holiday. The location they ended up at was a lake, in someplace he didn't know. Apparently he and Jeff had discussed it last night; that a little down time was needed in between the madness. Slenderman agreed and had packed for the trip during breakfast, since he didn't need food (at least not the kind humans did).

  
The only thing Dipper could conclude was that, wherever they were, it was past midnight, or close to it; the moon was out, not quite full, but enough to cast that strange bluish light over the scene. It was also quite cool here, more than his vest could handle. Which is why he was glad to see blankets had been one of the things packed. He quickly wrapped himself in one and sighed happily as warmth began to leech back in.

  
Looking around to see who was doing what, he wasn't surprised to find Mabel and Laughing Jack making castles, and filling them with sparkles and candy. BEN was staying well away from the water on a towel by Eyeless Jack. And Jeff was. . .

  
"Pretty damn amazin' aint' it."

  
Right behind him. Dipper was proud that he only twitched. "Yeah. Where are we?"

  
"Nameless little place in the middle of nowhere. Not a soul on this fuckin' planet knows about this place 'cept for us. And now you."

  
That was pretty amazing. Dipper sat down near the waterline and pulled his shoes off, letting the sand scratch between his toes. He was tempted to try and figure out just where they were, but knowing that it was a place they didn't really tell others about dampened that urge. The only other thing he felt was a little bit of homesickness; mostly concern over Danny's welfare.

  
When that became overwhelming he pulled out the horn and focused on it. The energy was faint, as it always was, but inside he could feel the pulse of Danny's core; strong as ever, and getting stronger. He was too far away to speak to him through their mental connection; so he would have to find comfort in that growing power.

  
~*~

  
Danny had returned to Gravity Falls to find the beavers had piled up all the ectocrystals they could find. He stored them in a block of ice to keep them cold and buried them in the permafrost just in case; then, out of pure nerves, ate the ones he brought with back. Once he was sure they wouldn't get hot he flew to the Northwest Manor. The manor was quiet, which made sense as it was still early in the morning. He half considered waking someone up, but time was of the essence; he needed to get the SCP instance out before something happened.

  
He remembered the path the stone took from the video and traced it to the room it was being kept in. When he phased through the door he nearly gagged. That stink was stronger than ever in here; locked in to ferment by the closed door and window. _'And there it is.'_

  
The mirror lay on the floor, away from any walls that might bump the stone away. He reached for them both, ready to take them to the foundation, when he remembered the ooze that had come from it when it touched one of his crystals. He reeled back, now unwilling to touch any part of it for fear of creating more of that. _'What did Dr. Kondraki call it? Holy tears?'_

  
He wasn't sure if it would react to him, being composed entirely of spectral energy as he was, but he wasn't going to risk it. He paced the room, staying far away from the mirror, thinking of what he could do. All the while a familiar itch began in his forehead, quickly growing unbearable. Eventually he couldn't think of anything but stopping the itch. He left the room to search for something to rub against.

  
Pacifica had gotten rid of most of the taxidermy, a decision made by both lasting trauma from the Lumberjack ghost, and a desire to cut as many ties with her family as possible. She still left a few pieces though; odd looking chimeras made from animals dead of natural causes, the works of a movement called Rogue Taxidermy. Danny strolled past the row of two headed animals and griffins with beaks for feet to a particularly interesting one; posed mid strike on a false riverbank. It was a sort of steampunk alligator with hydraulics in place of the various joints and its jaw. The scutes of its back had been replaced (due to damage to the hide, according to the plaque) by rows of tightly packed crankshafts, each painstakingly rotated into the correct position to mimic the scale pattern.

  
But Danny wasn't interested in the artistry. He only had eyes for those crankshafts. Standing on his hind legs, he started vigorously rubbing his horn against them. The metal was bliss, cool to the touch and just rough enough to really scratch the itch without pain. So focused on his scratching, was he, that he didn't notice the strips of fuzz peeling off. At least not until his now exposed horn ran across the metal with an unpleasant squealing sound.

  
The noise echoed down the halls, and it wasn't long before he could hear feet thumping his way. By the time Pacifica arrived, breathless and brandishing an old candelabra, Danny had peeled away the last of the felt, washed away the remaining ectoplasm, and was admiring his new horn in a bit of polished metal attached to a cyberdeer.

  
It wasn't much bigger or longer than before, but he could see it was denser, stronger. He wanted to test it really badly. The color was richer as well. The shape had changed slightly; more curved, almost scythe-like. He could see it had developed an edge as well on the upper side; a little odd but he wouldn't have to worry about hurting someone.

  
Finally he caught Pacifica's reflection and turned to face her, sheepishly tucking his tail under him and dropping his ears. She looked equally sheepish, setting the candelabra aside, but she recovered and put her hands on her hips. "Are you going to explain why you basically broke in and rubbed yourself all over the decor?"

  
He bristled. "I didn't rub on all of it! Just the alligator. And it's kind of a long story so I'll explain if you agree to help out."

  
She nodded. "Works for me."

  
While she packed the mirror and stone tightly, wrapping as many things around it as she could and still fit it in a box; Danny did his best to summarize the events of the day. She taped the box shut and handed it over. "So basically these things are a possible disaster waiting to happen once summer rolls in. How are we supposed to keep track of these? Sure, you can smell them, but what about ones that have already changed? IF some have changed."

  
"Pretty much. The beavers know how to find them; they leave them as offerings to me, so I'll just ask them to keep on the lookout for any. I might be able to get the Gobblewonker to look too. The island's cold enough now that there's no risk of a change, and it took a LOT of heat to get this little one."

  
With the instance safe, Danny instructed her to contact him just in case she found another 093. For security's sake he didn't give her the tracker, instead he buried that on the island with the rest of the crystals. After that he flew back to the Foundation to deliver the package. On arriving the SCP was taken from him and put in containment with the other. Danny watched for a little bit before wandering the facility some more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so the chapter title was supposed to be filler, bu~ut I could never think of a better one.  
> also, rogue taxidermy is a real thing, check it out it's crazy!


	30. A Break in the Case

Most of the staff ignored him, some looked but were quickly distracted by other things; he had no idea if that was him or just how things were around here. As he passed another containment leaking that same smell Dr. Kondraki emerged, a worried look on his face. He looked up from the stack of papers in his arms and brightened on seeing Danny.

  
"Glad to see you made it back in one piece, and with the SCP instance in tow. Was it hard to get?"

  
"Not at all." He decided not to mention his conversation with Pacifica.

  
Kondraki seemed to know anyway, but was tactfully saying nothing. He motioned for Danny to follow him. They passed through the same hallways Jeff had showed him; giving him a good idea of where they were headed, so he let his eyes wander. The first thing he noticed was there was a lot more people around. Mostly scientists, but a few were heavily armed; to his alarm. The heaviest increases were near the rooms with the SCPs possessing dimensional altering abilities.

  
They hurried past 093's containment and Danny gagged hard; the smell of the Other was coming through very strong. Kondraki was nearly dragging him by this point so he didn't have a chance to ask about it. When they came to a sudden halt Danny had to jerk his head back so he didn't stab the doctor with his horn. He did find it a little funny how quickly he got used to not having it.

  
When he recovered from the short stop he looked to find they were back at The Clockworks. His tail began to wag in cautious optimism. Kondraki smirked. "It's exactly what you think it is. Jeff let me know you were interested in it, and the comments you made. Do you really know what it is?"

  
Danny was already climbing the Output box before Kondraki finished. "I'm not sure. I think I recognize it from something I may have seen in the Ghost Zone. Or something similar at least. Honestly I just really want to tinker with it."

  
Kondraki pulled a card from his pocket and gave it to him, just a little put out that he had to stand on his toes to do so. Danny grabbed it in a foot and brought it up, looking at him curiously. "This is a temporary access card. O5 was intrigued by your comments. If they like what you do with this thing you may be given a permanent one; low level of course, can't have you tinkering with the main systems or anything."

  
He also set down a toolkit, though he had a sneaking suspicion it wouldn't be needed, and left Danny to it. He didn't even notice; already flank deep in the guts of the SCP. The first thing it needed was a cleaning, and a good one. It was a wonder the thing functioned at all with all the dust packed in everything. But that was easily fixed by turning the entire thing intangible and letting it all fall out, which it did; there was so much it just hit the floor in a soft clump of allergens.

  
A quick flick of his wings sent the dust flying to the far corner where he would sweep it out later. Now began the fine details; checking for rust and gunk. Jeff had told him how old the machine was theorized to be, so it was a considerable surprise to find the thing clean of any corrosion. He noted the shape and size of the gears, drawing them in ice with his tail on the outside of the metal beast. Despite the strange function they performed none of the materials used to build it were abnormal. There wasn't even a trace of spectral energy, to his confusion.

  
_'So if this isn't a ghost thing why is it so familiar?'_

  
He briefly entertained the idea that it was something from the Rift, but he had a feeling that wasn't right either. Jeff knew the place incredibly well; he would most likely know, and have said, if The Clockworks originated there. Plus the only time he had actually been in the Rift was not something he wanted to remember. Danny sighed. _'Maybe it's just all the gears; making me think of Clockwork's lair. No, that's not right. Come on Danny think!'_

  
Frustrated, he gave a howl; shaking the gears and belts and causing a section of them to give way and fall. He cringed at the loud crash and phased inside the machine entirely to check on them. Luckily nothing had cracked or torn. As he gathered the parts to replace them he spotted something etched on the rear wall of the machine. The words were in an unfamiliar rune system, but he understood it well enough.

>   
>  **The Rota Fortunae; Cosmic Mill. The grinder of fortune. Give what you will, make your choice, and receive what fate desires of you.**

  
In shock, he dropped the cogs again; not even wincing this time as they hit the floor. A world mill, they. . .

  
_'They have an actual World Mill. How? Where did they find it? Who took from where it belongs?'_ Filled with these questions and more, Danny hurriedly replaced the fallen parts and phased out the machine. He paced the floor, leaving trails of ice in his agitation. _'More importantly is this a real Mill? Whether it is or not I have to tell someone!'_

  
Clockworks forgotten, Danny galloped at top speed to find some help. He ignored the faint scents of that Otherness that slapped him as he passed. Thankfully they hadn't grown any stronger; whatever the Foundation was doing seemed to be helping. His claws slipped on the tile and sent him skidding around a corner, colliding with something furry that yipped in surprise. Danny extracted himself from the lab coat in a rush to help the animal he'd hurt, only to find a golden retriever standing and shaking itself.

  
The dog raised a paw to adjust it's glasses, knocked askew in the collision, and brushed off it's coat with a sweep of the tail. With that straightened out it greeted him with a doggy smile and a professional hand, or pawshake. "So this is the illustrious Danny Phantom, we finally meet. Dr. Kain, a pleasure."

  
The voice was slightly robotic and seemed to be coming from a device pinned to the dog's coat. Danny gingerly shook the offered paw. "Oh, um hello then. Word spreads fast around here."

  
Kain chuffed politely. "I've been hoping to speak with you, psychologically if you want. But I can see you have other things on your mind so I'll let you go. Any help I can offer though?"

  
"Um, I think I found something about The Clockworks; something big. Who do I talk to about that?"

  
"It depends, I suppose. How big?"

  
"What it is exactly."

  
Dr. Kain let out a wuff of surprise, knocking his glasses off. He quickly regained his composure and cleaned off his glasses, slipping them back on with a shaking paw. "That, that certainly is big. Possibly big enough for O5 to be interested. Follow me."

  
The two quadrupeds trotted along at a clip, Danny lost in his own thoughts and only keeping up by following Kain's tail. He did make sure he remembered the path they took though; for future use. A task that was turning out to be more difficult than he thought. The corridors of the Foundation were a maze. "OSHA would have a fit about this. How do you find your way around?"

  
"Mostly just being here for a long time. I'm told Kondraki explained to how the Foundation came about?"

  
Danny nodded.

  
"Well this particular Site was built around the original project so things just expanded as needed. I suppose we never really took any consideration to design, but it has had it's uses. A containment breach tends to be slowed down by the mess, making it easier to reduce damage. Ah, here we are!"

  
Kain stopped by an unremarkable wood door. He got on his hind legs and scratched at the door. Danny could hear the shuffling of paper stop as whoever was inside went to answer. Kain stepped back from the door and flashed a doggy grin at him.

  
"Unfortunately due to. . . regulations, we can't speak to the O5 council directly. Speak to the fellow inside. As for me, it's time for walkies. Sarah! Time for my walk, Sarah!"

  
Still shouting he walked away with far more dignity than his words gave him. Danny took a few steadying breaths as the door opened to reveal. . . nothing. He gave a confused chirp and went in, nose and ears going full bore to try and catch anything. There was faint scent of something floral, but nothing else. _'Well if we're playing hide and seek I don't' want to disappoint.'_

  
He closed his eyes and breathed out, sending a rush of cool air into the room. With the lower temperature he easily spotted someone hiding in the corner, just behind the door. They weren't human, even he could tell that; given they were nearly ten feet tall and looked like a walking flower. He trotted up to them and sat down, silently telling them the game was over. When they didn't respond he gave them a light poke on one of their leaves. They squeaked and let out a puff of gas that made him sneeze, forcing him to back off.

  
When he opened his eyes the room was still empty, but now that he knew where they were he could at least stare at the right place. So he decided to stop the games entirely and skip straight to business. "I was told by Dr. Kain I needed to speak to you. I have information the council might be interested in."

  
Those seemed to be the magic words. The flower being peeled away from the wall, becoming completely visible. Danny had to take back his original idea. This being was in fact some sort of cuttlefish-octopus hybrid; using mimicry to imitate a plant. Right now their colors were flashing vibrant pink on what he assumed was its head. They flopped to the floor and scuttled, spider-like, over to their desk and took a marker in one tentacle; quickly writing on a small whiteboard.

  
_"Sorry I hid from you. I mostly keep to myself. It's rare for someone to enter my office."_

  
Danny nodded in understanding. "It's okay. I'd rather know about a person before approaching too. Um, what's your name? If you use one."

  
The cuttlepus burbled merrily, turning a sunny yellow and wrote a response. _"The humans in this place call me Amarynthia. I don't think it means anything. What did you have to report?"_

  
They took up a digital pen and pad and waited. The sudden topic switch threw him off, making him forget what it was he wanted to say. "Uh, oh yeah. I think I found something new about that Clockwork machine. SCP-093? I was inspecting it inside and accidentally knocked a chunk of the machinery loose. I found this inscription behind it."

  
As he repeated the words he'd seen, Amarynthia's color changed from yellow to pale grey. They dropped the pen and slithered over, white board and marker wrapped in a feeder tentacle. They scribbled something down and stuck it in his face. _"Show me."_

  
After some deliberation about their dignity, Danny finally lifted them onto his back to carry them. He galloped back to the room, phasing through one guard in his rush to get to the machine (that guard still sees a therapist to this day). Amarynthia was unfazed by it, instead focusing their eyes on the massive metal beast. "I'll have to phase inside with you, I don't know any other way to show you this."

  
Amarynthia nodded eagerly, pupils dilated to fat Ws. Careful with his passenger, Danny slipped through the metal and swiftly located the section of gears that hid the inscription. Yanking them loose, he gave Amarynthia a good view of the words. They went stone still, even turning the same color and texture.

  
_"This IS big."_ They wrote. _"Let's go back to the office and I'll make a report. Quickly, please."_

  
He didn't need to be told twice. Danny hustled back as Amarynthia began writing a draft of their report. Once he deposited them safely on their desk, they wrote up the actual report. Unfortunately it looked like Danny had nothing to do in the meantime; Amarynthia admitted that even something like this would take some time to be reviewed.

  
With nothing more than a promise to be contacted when the report went through, Danny chose to return home; he'd been gone too long and there was no guarantee that the house had remained empty of monsters. He needed to go back. Uncaring of any possible alarms, he tore open a portal and went through.

  
Besides he was starting to miss everyone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I came up with Amarynthia in about five seconds. They were going to be a throw away character, just "look how wacky this place is" kind of thing. But five seconds and a few paragraphs later I am in love with this fella!


	31. Uninvited Guests; Unsettling Leads

Danny wasn't the only one who was getting homesick. As much as they enjoyed being there it was clear to Dipper and Mabel that the Under-realm would never be comfortable to them. So Jeff escorted them home, still cautiously keeping them in the Bloodleaf. They slipped in through the backdoor at the same time Danny came through the attic and lay on Dipper's bed. As he rested his weight on it he was greeted by a startled squawk.

  
He gripped the sheets and pulled them up at the same time he hit the floor, a snarl forming on his face. It stayed only briefly when he saw what was under the bed. Curled around each other and utterly terrified was a furby, if you asked someone who had never seen them to make one, and some sort of badly repaired patchwork doll. Hunched protectively over both of them was a little reptilian creature; almost like a crocodile but more monitor in the snout. The thing had a mane of black hair, at least that is what Danny thought it was. It snarled right back at him and even made a lunge, teeth snapping shut on his nose.

  
Danny gave a surprised yip, ended up reeling back too far and tumbling off the bed, the resulting thump alerting the others still downstairs. Knife drawn, Jeff lead the charge; kicking open the door to the sight of Danny thrashing violently with a tiny lizard clinging to his nose. Unable to contain himself he burst out laughing, falling to the ground right there. Mabel and Dipper peeked over him and started to laugh too. Dipper felt a little bad, but it was just too funny!

  
Eventually he stopped laughing and stepped over Jeff to help him out, carefully sliding a letter opener into the lizard's mouth to pry its teeth out. As soon as it was loose it scuttled back under the bed, mouth open wide and hissing like a leaky gas pipe. Dipper crouched a fair distance from the bed to look at their guests. He was pretty sure he recognized one, but decided to go for a second opinion. "Jeff? Do you know any of these guys?"

  
Jeff stopped laughing, and army crawled to the bed. Bug-eyes and quivering ears fixed on him. He recognized them instantly. "Widemouth? What're ya doin' here with. . ." His gaze slipped to the doll. He began to growl. "Ickbar?! YA LITTLE FUCKER! I'LL FIX YA GOOD THIS TIME!"

  
He lunged for the doll, intent on destroying it beyond repair. Dipper managed a frightened yelp that solved it quickly. "Danny! Stop him!"

  
The endigo pounced on Jeff, full size, and snatched him in his jaws; shaking him a little to disorient him. In the middle of it all Widemouth grabbed the lizard and Ickbar and ran to the closet, barricading the door as well as he could. After making sure Danny wasn't bleeding Dipper rounded on the killer. "What the hell, Jeff?"

  
It was said evenly, almost coldly; making the curse stand out even more. Jeff ducked his head and looked away. "Bad blood 'tween us. He manipulates kids; bullies 'em into givin' him what he wants. Threatens to kill 'em if they don't. I put him through a shredder before, but it looks like he didn't learn his lesson!"

  
Jeff's voice rose as he spoke, punctuating his sentence with another lunge for the doll. Danny bit down just a little and Jeff froze, feeling the razor sharp teeth pierce the first few layers of skin. He'd completely forgotten where he was so he went limp until Danny relented and put him down. Then he tried again; this time Danny just sat on him.

  
"No, no! I learned my lesson I swear! From now on I do as promised and no bullying for payment." Ickbar squeaked from inside the closet. His words were slurred by the stitching over his mouth.

  
From under Danny's rump Jeff managed to ask. "And if the problems don't go away when they're outta baby teeth? What're ya gonna do then?"

  
There was the sound of stitches popping as Ickbar answered. "There's other things I can use for weapons. Needles and animal bones work just as well."

  
Jeff thought about it. Needles could be found or bought anywhere, and animal bones were fairly well available too, depending on where the kid lived. It sounded good, and if Ickbar relapsed he could just threaten him with a shredder again. He gave the doll a thumbs up, realized he couldn't see it, then slapped Danny on the rump to get him off. Danny yelped and jumped up enough for him to get free. Jeff went to the closet door and crouched in front of it. "Ya keep your word on that and I'll leave ya be. But I'll be watchin' ya."

  
Widemouth opened the door and Ickbar scrambled out, throwing himself at Jeff's feet. "Yes, of course! Thank you! I'll try to help you any way I can as well, sir!"

  
Backing away from the overeager toy, Jeff waved a hand at it. "Alright, alright. Just none of that sir shit, alright? Fuckin' freaks me out."

  
Jeff rubbed the last of Danny's spit off in a clear nervous gesture. When he got the chance he snuck downstairs to raid the fridge again. Mabel picked up Ickbar, tutting over the poorly done repair job. "You guys clear up this mess. I'm going to fix this poor guy up properly."

  
"Hey!" Widemouth protested. "I think I did pretty good. It's hard holding a needle in these claws."

  
Dipper hefted Widemouth up and on the bed to stop him from following his sister. The lizard climbed up to rest on his head, still baring it's teeth at everyone.

  
"Okay, now that this is all settled. Why did you come here Mister?"

  
"Widemouth, Mr. Widemouth. Nice to meet you. As for your question. It's just not safe for us little guys down there anymore. Sure it's always rough when you're four feet tall and fluffy, but thing's have been getting much worse lately."

  
"Worse how?" Dipper asked. Danny felt a prickling down his spine.

  
"First I just thought they were newbies, you know? Some weird critter that the world spat out. Small guys, like me. When I went to offer my. . . services, they attacked me! It's not just me either, anything smaller than them is fair game."

  
"What are they then?" Danny cut in, climbing on the bed and curling around the creature.

  
"That's just it. I don't know! When it comes to knowing monsters I'm one of the best; except for Jeff. That's why I came here. Hoping he might know, you know?"

  
Danny stayed behind to continue questioning the new residents while Dipper collected Jeff. The kitchen was empty when he got there, but the door was open so he went to the backyard. It was flooded with crows and ravens, all of them so dark they were like patches of void in the grass. At the far end of the yard, nearly hidden by the shadow of the fence, was a dog of enormous size; it was larger than Smile by a foot and stared at him with unnervingly human eyes. It didn't move towards him; simply studying him for a moment before returning it's attention to Jeff.

  
When he stepped on the grass all eyes turned to him. There was a deafening silence broken by a thunderous boom of hundreds of wings taking flight at once. Dipper, frightened, closed his eyes and crouched down, protecting his head with his arms. It seemed to go on forever, but when it finally stopped he felt someone touch his shoulder. He opened his eyes to a yard empty of anything except Jeff; who watched him with concern.

  
"So, do you usually have mourning parties with birds?"

  
Dipper's question broke the heavy air and made Jeff bust out laughing. "Normal birds I try to avoid. Don't like me much, ya see; 'cept for cats. The Convocation and Black Dog are Fears; like me. I'm a loner most of the time, but I got a few allies out there. I was askin' for any leads or secrets they mighta found."

  
"And have they?"

  
Jeff crouched beside him, resting his arms on his knees. "Nothin' I didn't already know. I'll tell ya this though, Dipper. Somethin's hittin' the fan and it's fixin' to hit it hard. Me an' Danny went through the main Foundation site and he found a ton of places where somethin's leakin' through. He says it smells like the air in the Under-realm, but I'm wonderin' if somethin' might just be tryin' to use it as a shortcut."

  
Dipper felt a shiver at that. Then he remembered why he had been looking for him. "Mr. Widemouth said someone's been attacking people in the Under-realm. He wanted to know if you knew what they might be."

  
"Is Ickbar still with 'em?"

  
"No, Mabel took him to fix his stitches, messy needlework makes her crazy."

  
"Alright then. I'll see what I can do, but I ain't guaranteein' anythin'."

  
They went back upstairs to see that Danny had gotten the little lizard to calm down enough to take some water and mashed up fruit. He was looking over it while it ate and they both noticed a certain dinginess to its scales, as well as a dull sheen in its little yellow eyes. The poor thing was clearly sick, but that wasn't all Jeff noticed about it. To his mind it almost resembled a miniature 628. _'If it is then it's prob'ly blind. Otherwise it'd be attackin' everythin' and everyone 'round it right now.'_

  
~*~

  
It took a few minutes for Jeff to find his book; not realizing Dipper had stored it with his own books to keep it out of the way. When he did find it he sat on the floor in front of Widemouth and started going through it. Widemouth's description of them was shaky, on account of fleeing for his life.

  
"They were like tiny metal spiders, if I think about it. Metal spiders with bits of people in them. Yecch!" He shuddered hard. "Not too difficult to squash if you're big; in fact, most of them were smashed. Us little guys just had to run."

  
Jeff grunted and flipped through the pages of constructs the book brought up. There were a few arachnid ones; Retrievers and the like. None of them were as small as what Widemouth saw. What little he could describe didn't help narrow the search any; until he mentioned one key distinction. "And if you got caught that was the end of you. I watched one of the survivors get BRVR. Next thing I know it's bigger and has bits of the poor guy assimilated into it."

  
He nearly dropped the book at that. That little bit told him exactly what it was; the only child he _wanted_ to kill. The Manufactured Newborn. Jeff set the book down gently and turned to Widemouth, a very cold look in his working eye. "Widemouth. What about the others? Is that thing still down there?"

  
Thankfully Widemouth shook his head. Jeff felt his whole back release at the movement. "When it got BRVR the alert went out and it was killed and destroyed before I was out of town. Still came here though; paranoia and all that."

  
Jeff sighed. It sounded like things were contained pretty quickly. Still, it was troubling that the Newborn had reached the Under-realm at all. Except for him, most Fears stuck to the human world. So for one of them to wind up there, even by accident, was a bad sign. After making sure everyone knew what he was doing he went, once again, to the Under-realm.

  
It was high time he talked to one of the higher ups, and he knew just the one to take this to.


	32. Loose Ends in the Sea of Trees

It hadn't been hard to get Widemouth and company set up in the house. The demented furby lookalike was already skilled in staying out of the way of adults; as was Ickbar. The lizard was another issue entirely. It was blind and reacted aggressively to pretty much anything that wasn't Jeff, Widemouth, or Mabel, for some reason. In the end the only way they could keep it out of sight was by making a nest of some of Mabel's old sweaters and hiding it in the far end under her bed.

  
Things only got more confusing over the next few days as others appeared looking for protection and reassurance. The Pines could offer little of either. Very few of their charms, no matter how improvised or crazy, could work on the creatures that lurked around. Plus, Jeff had returned to the Under-realm for some sort of business or other; knowledge was in short supply as he'd taken his book as well.

  
The most they could do was give medical care to the ones who needed it, and comfort the ones they could. It was chaotic on the best days and absolute madness on the worst. But like all things that came their way, the twins took it on with gusto, and conquered each challenge.

  
It helped that Mabel had found a new hobby in knitting surgical suits for the smaller critters.

  
Like most things that happened to them, Dipper and Mabel settled into a rhythm for a time. Until one blustery afternoon when Danny was helping bandage a small black cat with an uncanny aura, not to mention four eyes. It was fairly calm as well; watching them as they worked. After a few minutes, taking time to check over it for anything else, Dipper gave the cat a seal of approval and sent it along. Dipper peeked out the window to see the yard blissfully empty of anyone else; he sighed and wiped his brow.

  
As they were settling in to relax for the afternoon, Dipper's cloak began buzzing. He pulled out the Dalv phone, having completely forgotten he had the thing. Someone was calling. He flicked the answer symbol and Vlad appeared on screen; looking rather more put upon than he liked to look. He saw his call was answered and heaved a sigh of happiness, then launched into an explanation almost faster than Danny could catch it.

  
"Daniel I know you have important things going on, but there was a massive ecto-leak from the old Fenton portal. It's drawing in all kinds of nuisance ghosts-don't touch that!" He cried. Something in the background shattered; it sounded expensive. "Rotten little-! We don't have the equipment to properly clean things up. So if you could gather those larvae you promised me I may be able to whip up something temporary."

  
Staying calm, he agreed to hunt up some larvae as quick as possible. Danny shut off the Dalv co phone with a click; then curled up on himself and lightly whapped his head with his tail. "I can't believe I forgot that! It's been so long!"

  
Dipper pulled his tail away and sat on it to prevent any more whippings. "It's just like Vlad said; you've had a lot going on. Between Pariah and establishing your territory in the Ghost Zone. Now there's the possibility of the entire Under-realm coming to hide in our house. It's a lot."

  
"Yeah, too much. I can't do it on my own. It'd be like sending an ant to maintain a chicken coop. But you need to stay here and keep things calm. What do I do?" He yowled, collapsing in a heap again.

  
"I c-can h-help if you wa-ant."

  
The offer came as a surprise to both of them. Toby hadn't been entirely eager to leave the house, unless it was to go back to the Under-realm to talk to Slenderman. He flinched at the sudden stares he was getting and tried to back away, head twitching back and forth. "I-I mean. I-I c-called Je-eff and he said if you d-did this it w-w-would be better to have someone a-alive to draw off."

  
Danny crouched on the bed, tail flicking as he thought it over. It was true that it would be harder catching them on his own. Larvae may feed on aetheric energy like him, but they were scavengers by nature; they would be too skittish of him to even try to sneak about. Still the thought that Toby was offering himself for bait made him nauseous.

  
"I'll b-be really careful, I pr-promise!" Ugh, he couldn't say no to the puppy dog eyes; Toby was practically wagging a tail at him. How could he not give in? He got down and stood on his hind legs to drive the point home. "I'll let you help, but the second it looks like you're in trouble, by MY judgment not yours, I'm sending you home. Got it?"

  
Toby nodded so hard his head twitched for several seconds after. With a sigh and distinct feeling that he might regret this, Danny dropped back down and grew until he was large enough to carry Toby. He nonchalantly tossed him on his back and trotted outside to his first hunting place; Aokigahara Forest.

  
~*~

  
The air was heavy when they arrived, but it always was here. Toby stuck close and the two agreed to leave if he started feeling negatively about himself. The many deaths in this forest made the atmosphere ripe with lost and desolate souls; easy prey for the weak larvae. Aokigahara larvae were also noted for having much bigger appetites and being hardier than their cousins in other places, making them a prime subject for Vlad's testing.

  
Barely a half hour had passed before Danny could make out the pallid, shapeless forms of the larvae drifting through the trees like airborne jellyfish. He curled his right wings down to block the sight of a particularly gruesome death by blade from Toby's view, watching with equal disgust as the parasites swarmed the faint energy like starving vultures.

  
They wouldn't be able to capture something that voracious. Danny nudged his companion to get on. "It'll be safer to catch the better fed, lazier ones; we'll have to go further, and the energy is darker there so don't leave my back."

  
Toby only nodded, already pressing close to him. He couldn't see the larvae around him but could feel when one made a curious pass. Not only that, but the air here was almost. . . suffocating; like it was actively trying to drown him. He flinched, startled by a bolder larva attempting to latch on. Danny let out a cloud of cold mist to chase it away. "Danny, w-why does it feel like this h-here? It's aw-awful."

  
"Do you need to leave?"

  
He shook his head; he'd been through worse before he ever became a proxy. Danny was unconvinced but he still explained. "Aokigahara is a place of death. It draws in those whose spirits are weakened by sadness and the endless drain of daily life. Long ago it wasn't like that. The Sea of Trees was nothing more than an old growth forest; with all the allure such a place held. Then something changed about it. I don't know if a demon or spirit came here and caused it. Or if it always had that kind of power and it was just extremely weak.

  
"It's grown stronger though. On what, no one knows. What is known is that the place is growing. . . deeper. It's getting easier and easier for people to get lost; easier for them to succumb. Before the urge for suicide was just a passing thought; easily ignored and moved on from. Now it's like a living thing itself; reaching out, almost controlling people. Those that give in have left messages behind; filled with fearful words, like the person doesn't want to do this but has no choice. All of that is building in this place, and that's what you're feeling."

  
Toby pressed even closer on hearing this. Thankfully whatever awfulness was causing that didn't seem interested in him. The larvae certainly were though, and were bumping against him more frequently. It was starting to make him feel like a human bug zapper. None of them tried feeding; a blessing for him.

  
For Danny it meant a large sample size. In less time than it had taken to get there he had a full drag net, borrowed from the Mystery Shack and treated with a silver concoction for just this purpose. He sealed the net shut by forming a ball of ice around it, making a handle for him to carry in his hind claws. Toby didn't seem to keen on being away from him so, for the time being, Danny simply let him ride with him to make his delivery.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this and the next few chapters are probably gonna be shorter, just filling a few plotholes and stuff.


	33. Fire with Fire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another filler chapter, most of the editing involved changing the capitalization of "larvae"

Saying the town was a mess was an understatement. The place was absolutely swarming with low-level ghosts; the brainless blobs drifting around and bumping into everything and everyone. He cringed at the sight of so much ectoplasm smeared around the place.

  
"I-it looks l-like a jello mold e-exploded here."

  
"That's putting it lightly. Stay on my back, I don't want you touching this stuff, kit."

  
Toby blinked at the nickname but did as he was told. To tell the truth he didn't want to touch it either. It smelled terrible and would probably make him sick. The doors of Vlad's manor were glued shut by it; taking a judicious use of ice to crack it enough to get through. A swarm of weak ghosts charged the entrance and Toby had to slide down Danny's tail to kick the door shut before they could reach it.

  
Rather than cling to the constantly swaying limb, Toby checked for a clear landing and dropped off. Danny felt him go and turned around instantly to check on him, only to find him falling into step beside him. Toby snickered. "Sorry Danny, but J-Jeff's al-already a-adopted me. You can b-be my uncle t-though!"

  
Danny gave him a playful nudge in response. Behind them the ice trap full of larvae squealed and writhed angrily; reminding them of just why they were there. Toby rolled it away from the door and was about to ask where they could find Vlad when a muffled bang shook the floor. Danny laughed at that. "If there's one thing I've learned about ghosts; when in doubt follow the explosions."

  
He let Toby roll the trap along, which he seemed to be enjoying, and making the larvae dizzy beforehand couldn't hurt. He snickered when Toby started humming the katamari song. Then he started wondering if he could make one of these ice balls sticky; that warranted some experimenting. He was just about to start planning on what to make the surface from when Toby stopped rolling the ball, and he bumped right into the lab door; denting it slightly. He suffered the kid's laughter for a few minutes before the door opened, and Danny lightly headbutted him inside, rolling the trap after.

  
The lab, like most of the house, was clean; though the smell of sour ectoplasm lingered even here. The larvae began writhing against the walls of their prison, eager to find the source of the scent. Danny hefted it in his jaws and jerked his head to motion for Toby to follow. They eventually found Vlad in the very back of the room, frantically checking his own portal for possible leaks.

  
"H-hello? Danny found y-your things."

  
Vlad turned with predatory quickness, the stress on his face melting away when he saw them. He threw his arms around Danny and greeted Toby kindly. "Thank goodness, my own portal has been showing signs of a possible leak. These will make all of this clean up much easier. Once I finish draining the excess ectoplasm off the portal of course."

  
Since he had already been in the process of doing so, lowering the pressure on the portal only took a few minutes. After which he immediately jumped on studying the larvae, directing Danny to put them in a tank of liquid ectoplasm to keep them fed during research. The fluid made them visible to Toby, who reacted with all the excitement of a child in an aquarium for the first time. He pulled his goggles off and pressed his face against the tank, giggling as some of them swam up and tried to gnaw on him through the tank. To him they looked like fat leeches with lamprey mouths; it was weirdly adorable.

  
His observation was cut short by the sound of the lab door opening again, Danny leaving with what looked like a heavily modified vacuum strapped on his waist. He glanced over his shoulder. "Toby, I'm going to head out and help clear the worst of this stuff away. Stay here with Vlad."

  
Vlad stopped still where he had been about to pull out a larva. "Are you sure that's wise, Daniel? I doubt he's had much experience with these kinds of things. Not to mention he seems rather. . . excitable."

  
"Let him help Vlad; he's a sharp kid. You'll have to be a bit patient with him but he's a quick learner. Be careful, kit, and do what Vlad tells you."

  
Toby rolled his eyes. "Yes, mom." He said mockingly, giving the endigo a thumbs up.

  
Danny rolled his eyes right back and left. Since ground zero was Fenton Works he headed there first. It looked mostly clear; first response teams had evacuated the area and done what they could. That mostly amounted to push brooms and sweeping the goop into the streets. Other teams were hard at work scrubbing the buildings themselves, and welcomed him happily when he landed.

  
The vacuum was a modified version of the old Fenton Weasel, renamed the Ecto-Badger; designed to reprocess ectoplasm into a purified powder that could then be used as a solvent for loosening denser masses of ectoplasm. He unloaded it and stopped, looking at the tank and the amounts of goop. He groaned. "I'm going to need a bigger tank."

  
Luckily he found one behind Fenton Works and rigged it up to the Badger's hose. Then he set to work. Even with the larger tank it filled with powder quite fast, but that just made the rest of the job easier. At least until he cleared the major mess and realized just how much the ghosts had spread around. _'At least now I know why he wanted the larvae. They'll be able to hunt down any other spills.'_

  
Leaving the powder filled tank behind for the rest of the clean up team to use, he set out gathering up the myriad little ghosts that had escaped. Whether he would bring them back to the Zone or eat them depended on his appetite.

  
Back in Vlad's lab Toby was keeping himself occupied taunting the larvae. Occasionally Vlad would ask him to do something; "Hold this down" or "Pull that" but he mostly just left the boy to his own devices. At the very least he was glad he wasn't destructively curious; most of his explorations involved poking something and deciding it was interesting or not depending on the reaction.

  
He eventually stopped teasing the test subjects and went to sit by the door, obviously missing Danny already. Vlad sighed and took off his gloves, tucking them in the pocket of his leather apron and walked to him. He tapped his shoulder. "You needn't stay down here you know. If you're bored you can go look around. Just stay inside."

  
Toby smiled under his scarf. "I-I will."

  
"And if you start getting hungry just ring the kitchen staff and let them know. There's intercoms all over, and they're easy to see. Now go on; have fun."

  
The boy bounced on his heels happily, thanking him before darting out of the lab. The manor was quiet, very unlike his own home. Where Slender's home always had people moving about and proxies coming and going, the only real movement here was the few employees currently working. He did run into a few housekeepers here and there, but mostly he asked them for directions to other parts of the manor.

  
It took most of the day for Vlad to finish his prototype, but once he did he called Toby down to help him move it out. Toby wasn't sure what to make of it. He could see several larvae floating around inside; drifting in small clouds in certain directions. It was also surprisingly small, about the size of Danny's ice ball. Vlad caught his inquiring expression. "With Danny using the Badger there won't be any major mess. We just need to find the remainder so it doesn't spawn anything else. Larvae are more than just parasites, they can track even the faintest scent."

  
"So it's like a g-ghost compass?"

  
"Precisely." He did catch on quick. They wheeled the thing into town and set to work; clearing the remainder of the mess before sundown. Not a one of them thought of the possible reasons behind the leak.

  
Especially when the portal had never actually leaked. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> only while editing did I notice the "badger" joke


	34. A Bad Fortune; First Door Opened

After filing their report Amarynthia went back to SCP-914 for further testing; on request from O5. The revelation of it being a possible Axis Mundi had added an entirely new line of inquiry into its results. So the cuttlepus was instructed to observe the latest round of testing. Of course no visceral matter was to be used, as per regulation, but permission had been given to test plant matter; particularly the seeds of SCP-038 and its fruits.

  
They had never overseen testing before so it was a new thing for them. Still, Amarynthia approached everything as a new challenge; which was the main reason they had been hired. That and their intelligence; they were an octopus cuttlefish hybrid after all. The whole idea still troubled them though, after all they been the only one to see how truly panicked SCP-4140-d had been on reporting it. The Foundation dealt in all manner of creatures and objects; an alarming number of them potentially apocalyptic in nature. Never had any of them dealt with something that might be responsible for maintaining a universal balance of some kind.

  
At least that's how 4140-d had made it sound.

  
Amarynthia wiped some stress mucus from their mantle. Now was not the time to entertain flights of fancy; now they needed to be focused. The results of this testing session was going straight to O5. It had to be professional. Amarynthia was first to arrive, and as such had to wait for the other two researchers to come. They burbled impatiently, standing on their feeder tentacles and rocking themselves to stay occupied until then. The researchers greeted them on arrival and they began.

  
The tests started simply; turning seeds into other kinds of seeds, trying to influence the results. Then they started putting the fruits through with other things to see if they could make it clone as the original tree did. Most of the tests were simply them trying to game the system. So far nothing had succeeded. Though some of the results had been particularly unusual; reams of letters printed on the rinds of fruit or the seed skins. Each one translated to warnings in the various languages presented. Amarynthia was getting the distinct feeling that, whatever force inhabited this machine, they were pissing it off.

  
That feeling was confirmed when the last result was a fruit from the Sandbox tree. It sat for a few seconds before exploding far more violently than an average specimen, injuring several of the other researchers and killing one of the guards outright via a seed to the spinal cord. Each and every seed had the same words on them.

>   
>  **"It has begun. The first door is broken. The monsters rise and chaos will follow."**

  
Feeling extremely uneasy now, Amarynthia excused themselves and quickly scuttled back to their office. They pressed a button under their desk that opened a special tank. Their panic room. Amarynthia submerged and buried themselves in the bottom to await the inevitable havoc.

  
Five hours later it started. Not with a bang, but a flash as the power went out. It wasn't long before a mass containment breach followed.

  
~*~

  
The entirety of Site 15 was in an uproar. During the blackout SCP-239's vitals had gone critical, her heart rate began failing, then, during resuscitation efforts, stopped. Her death somehow caused a chain reaction through the facility; affecting each of the areas marked by SCP-4140-d. The majority of the breaches were stopped, but there had been irreparable damage done to SCP-093 and SCP-093-2. The mirrors had cracked and Tears were leaking through. For the time being they shut off that section of the facility and sent a squad to try and keep the God's Tears under control.

  
As the squad struggled to contain the breach, other employees began reporting seeing hallucinations of oversized, humanoid torsos wandering the facility. The torsos couldn't interact with anything, seeming more like holographic projections than anything else, but every location they appeared in was marked and guarded. Kondraki observed the entire ordeal, rolling a seed from the test in his fingers. He had worked here for so long he thought he had become numb to whatever the SCPs could throw at him. This? This was terrifying, because it wasn't the SCPs doing it; something from elsewhere was the cause.

  
His first thought was that it had something to do with Jeff and his kind. However, when he tried to contact him nothing happened. He felt a slight panic before he quashed it. Whenever Jeff left this reality his tracker stopped working. It was an issue they had never been able to fix so as long as it never sent out the death signal it was ignored. So Jeff was most likely in the Rift or that Under-realm place. All Kondraki had to do was wait for his signal to resurface.

  
In the meantime he needed to help with the containment efforts. He grabbed a dart pistol from his desk drawer and let the butterflies settle around him. Then he opened the door and threw himself into the fray with gleeful abandon. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another short chapter. Also I can't seem to stop finding ways to get Amarynthia in this story.


	35. Going to the Top (which is ironically at the bottom)

The Abyss was never a pleasant place to be, what with Zalgo being imprisoned in its depths, but it was where this matter had to be taken. So with a steadying breath he began his descent to the Hall of Nightmare, an extravagant name for a place so plain looking. Until one considered that the inhabitants of said Hall were the first monsters ever conceived by humanity, and the oldest creatures to ever be feared.

  
He felt his legs wobble as he remembered just who he would be talking to. Sure he was a Fear, a fairly strong one if he was to brag, but even the strongest and deadliest of the Fears would hesitate to go where he was headed. The creators (some might even say Gods) of the Under-realm were given many names by humans, but most simply knew them as the Boogeymen. They ruled the Abyss, and it was their choice to trap Zalgo there; in order to watch him. They were also the only creatures other than Slenderman that knew him as a Fear.

  
One would think that with a name like Abyss it would either be extremely hot or very dark. It was in fact neither. Instead the Abyss was bathed in a rusty red twilight; the air carried the faint chill of early winter. Every step echoed in such a way that even Jeff felt on edge; certain there were eyes on him from every shadow and crag. Given where he was that was probably true. Either way it didn't help his nerves.

  
When he finally stood at the entrance to the Hall he was more than ready to turn tail and run. As expected from the original nightmares; their domain was designed to test the mettle of any who entered; straining the mind while looking somehow unremarkable. The entire structure was hewn whole from the stone of the Abyss, no bricks or individual pieces. Yet the doors still swung open with a harsh grinding that sounded a little too much like cracking bone.

  
He stepped inside and was swallowed, ever so briefly, by darkness as the doors shut soundlessly behind him. Jeff gulped and shoved his hands in his hoodie pocket to hide how badly he was wringing his hands. Jeff had to forcibly remind himself of his reason for doing this. Why he had to talk to them directly.

  
The Boogeymen had largely removed themselves from society after the advent of electricity destroyed the last of their darkness. Because of this they knew little of what was happening above. By making them aware of the strange events taking place, Jeff hoped to bring them to arms against whatever was causing this. Failing that, perhaps he would light a fire under them to do more to protect the realm. Either way they had to know; maybe he would even find a direction to point his knife in.

  
The idea filled him with morbid glee and calmed him down immensely.

  
~*~

  
The room where the Boogeymen waited was little different from the grand council halls used by groups like the United Nations, with the exception of being made entirely of stone. The beings in question surged high above the ground in a ball of liquid darkness, watching him with all their eyes. A single orb coalesced and stretched towards him, a jagged hole opening in it to issue their voice.

  
**_"What do you seek of us, Fear of Abnormal?"_ **

  
"Things have been happening above. Both realms are affected, and it's even stretchin' Beyond."

  
**_"What proof do you have? Present this evidence!"_ **

  
"It's all in my mind. Look there."

  
The mass moved towards him at a sedate pace, stretching out dozens of stalks, tiny clumps of hands on each, and touched him. They flowed over him and down his throat, he could feel them pressing inside of him pounding against the walls of his skull; they all spoke at once as they discussed the sights he showed them.

  
The voices nearly drove him to his knees. Then, finally, the mass retreated, dripping off him in long strands of ink. Shifting back into the writhing shadow mass and reattaching to the ceiling. Jeff could just hear some sort of whispering from it, though it was mostly drowned out by the sound of him vomiting the last of them up. The conversation lasted at least an hour before the mouth came back.

  
_**"This is most concerning. If it is true. Fear child!"** _

  
Jeff jumped, head reeling from the sudden motion after what he'd just gone through. He stood straight. "Yes, whattya ask of me?"

  
He had to hide a wince as his accent slipped through a little. The Boogeymen, if they heard it, ignored it.

  
**_"We have no desire to see such things come to fruition. But Our power is too occupied with holding Zalgo. As such We grant you full jurisdiction to deal with this as you wish; as long as it is done for the sake of the Under-realm. Now go, Fear."_ **

  
He had already been planning to go all out to stop this, damn the consequences. But now those consequences were gone. He had to hide his grin behind a cough. Eager to leave since his main task was complete, Jeff bowed and hightailed it out of the Hall.

  
Though he was still feeling a little weak from the experience, Jeff ran until he was out of the Abyss. Only then did he stop and let himself collapse, shaking hard while he slowly recovered. He already had his next stop in mind.

  
~*~

  
Jeff landed in his destination with a grunt; every nerve, every cell, on high alert. Coming here was always risky business as the area was technically controlled by the Serpent's Hand. For an SCP of any class to come here was waltzing matilda with fate. Even though the Serpent's Hand claimed to be good; claimed they were setting the SCPs free instead of locking them up. He really didn't want to know what their definition of "set free" was, but he had some nasty ideas. Besides, being able to wander around killing with nothing but a tracker was as free as he could get; at least the way he saw it.

  
Yet here he was, in what could be considered the heart of their entire operation; The Wanderer's Library. An entire dimension of its own that, like the Rift, could only be accessed through specific paths. Paths that that the Hand oh so creatively named Ways. The Serpent's Hand discovered one of these Ways and began strategically building their own sites around these doorways. Furthermore, each door was littered with security that scanned anyone who entered; any SCP would be recognized and an alarm sent. All this left him with precious little time to accomplish his task.

  
At least this task was simple. Stuffed in his pocket was a single sheet of paper; a letter he had written containing everything he had seen, learned, and theorized about the current incidents. This letter was seen, and even added to, by much of Under-realm's society. The more information he had to start with the better the Library's response. Now the problem was actually getting in; after all, it wasn't like the font of all possible knowledge would be empty.

  
There didn't seem to be any Serpent's Hand in it, at least. Still, Jeff took care to stay in the shadows; a difficult task in a place with pure white walls. By the time he found an unoccupied aisle his tentacles were out and squirming; twitching towards every minor sound. Frankly he was exhausted by all the stress he had been through lately.

  
He slipped the letter into the pages of a random book and sat down to wait, listening to the rustling of paper from the Library's innumerable tales; viewed by both humans and creatures alike. Even with the letter, it would take the Library time to find the appropriate book to answer him with. So Jeff took the opportunity to try and relax, just a little. He hummed a little to himself, slowly calming down.

  
At some point (there were no clocks to tell time) the shelf above him rattled and a book was dropped into his lap. It was deceptively light volume, similar in size to a standard graphic novel, with a picture of a cockroach with Jesus' head on the front. It was a story, told in journal form, of an apocalypse brought about by a power hungry Fear; the Wooden Girl. Other Fears appeared in the tale as well, along with some things that seemed a little too familiar to him; such as the realm beyond the Rabbit Holes.

  
"Oh joy, always wanted to live through the end of the world." He grumbled, recognizing a warning when he saw it. "So this shit's headin' for a breakdown, eh? I'm guessin' there's no way to stop it."

  
The book rustled in his hands, falling open to the end. The protagonist had stopped the destruction; the world was still a mess, but he had stopped it. Jeff decided that was as good an end as he could hope for and put the book back. Just in time too, as the Library began to fill with the sound of shouting and boots. "The cavalry has arrived."

  
With his hands in his pocket he turned on his toes and walked out. While he wasn't completely happy, he was no longer quite so stressed; knowing the world was going to survive to some degree. As happy as he was he didn't even notice when he basically walked right past the officers coming to look for him. Their gazes followed him as he passed, looking to each other in confusion, then forgetting why they had been there and going to lunch. Only the echoes of a song remaining.

  
_Thank you, I'll say goodbye soon_  
_Though its the end of the world,_  
_Don't blame yourself now_  
_And if its true,_  
_I will surround you and give life to a world_  
_That's our own_


	36. Unsteady Silence in the Storm

Although the twins had returned home, and even been there for a few weeks now, there was no trace of the previous chaos. With the exception of Widemouth and company, no monsters had appeared; either seeking safety or to cause harm. It was as though the monsters had simply forgotten they existed.

  
This did little to curb the nerves of the residents; Danny constantly stalked the neighborhood, on the alert for the slightest thing off, and Dipper spent many a sleepless night trying to figure it out. None of them would really admit that the restlessness came from the lack of any communication from Slender or any of his companions. After returning to the house Toby had left for the Under-realm Gate and then never came back. They hadn't seen or heard anything from the others either.

  
Dipper would understand if it was just caution, but even BEN had vacated his computer in favor of the manor. He couldn't have chosen a worse time either; the site was blowing up, and more and more people were starting to write and vlog about experiences. The world of hoax videos was quickly being taken over by real sightings and real attacks. It was too much for him to keep track of by himself, and Danny was bound and determined to stay nearby.

  
It was as though the entire Under-realm was trying to hide itself or run for cover. He sincerely hoped that wasn't the case. They were going to need all the help they could get if it was.

  
The only ones who weren't hiding were the ones that were too wild to care. Mabel had chased away more than one Rake in the days following their homecoming; one had even taken refuge in her sewing room. Not to mention an alarming number of omen monsters that were starting to appear all over the world. Dipper let his head fall on the desk, groaning. _'What a time for Jeff to leave. He could have at least left some sort note to help.'_

  
Widemouth didn't have much to offer either; he almost seemed to be in shock. Asking about the event that drove him out triggered a fit of tremors that he poorly hid. Ickbar had not seen the initial attack and could give some information, though not much more than Widemouth. As for the lizard, once it calmed down and was feeling better, it was surprisingly friendly. It would follow whoever was up for hours, tail wagging like a dog. It also proved extremely helpful in routing what was turning into an invasion of Rakes.

  
Danny avoided it like the plague, though, as he couldn't shake a sense of familiarity about it. It didn't help that it absolutely reeked of the awful smell he had begun associating with monsters. Which of course meant it adored him; nothing made it happier than hanging around him. For his sake Mabel had given it multiple baths to try and get rid of the smell, or at least cover it; which helped a little.

  
She had dubbed it Sir Wiggles of Tummy-Tickles.

  
In the end they had hit a wall. With nothing happening or changing Dipper was left without leads. The most he could do was monitor his site, and a few others that BEN had found, in hopes of finding something to go on. Or to keep him occupied until Jeff returned with something.

  
~*~

  
It took another week for anything to happen.   
The strange calm had seeped into the house, slowly lulling everyone into a sense of routine. Yet all things are destined to end, and the false calm ended with Widemouth loudly declaring. "THAT'S IT!"

  
Dipper yelped and clapped his hands over his ears, knocking the demented furby off his shoulder. Widemouth was unfazed and continued making incoherent noise while pointing at the computer screen. Displayed, blurry and unfocused, was a video of a spider creature seemingly made of metal and bone. Dipper had set the video to auto-replay so he could study it better.

  
The cry had brought everyone running, Danny hastily curling around him to draw off the panic. When he had drained off enough, Widemouth lost consciousness for the better part of an hour, and woke up shaking. He wrapped himself in Danny's tail for comfort and stayed quiet for another minute or so before letting Dipper question him.

  
"What did you mean by that?" He asked, looking warily at the now paused video.

  
"That was one of those things that showed up back home! One must've got away! How old is that video? It'll get bigger!"

  
Widemouth jumped on the desk and clicked frantically, trying to find the post date. The screen froze and glitched out, going black. BEN appeared a second later. "Calm down, it's only a couple hours old. Plus I already told Jeff about it and he's on it. Still, the fact that even one of those was in the Under-realm is a bad sign."

  
Danny's ears flicked nervously. "Why?"

  
"With the exception of Jeff, Fears aren't allowed in the Under-realm. They aren't even supposed to be able to get there! Move, Widemouth, I'm coming out."

  
With a flicker of the lights BEN climbed out of the screen and slipped under Danny's chin, taking some comfort in the ghost's presence. Danny nuzzled his hair a little before asking. "So, do you know what it is?"

  
"Yeah." BEN sighed. "It's called the Manufactured Newborn; those things are part of it, or they work for it. Jeff says it's the Fear of Technology; it's only been operating for a maybe a century or so. I thought that since it was pretty new it wouldn't be affected by the barrier, and that that's how it got in."

  
Dipper started pacing, hand on his chin as he thought out loud. "That wouldn't make sense. From what I recall about barriers like that, they're pretty general. At that size they have to be or it's too hard to control. If it's meant to keep out Fears then it will; no matter how old they are. But then, how does Jeff pass it? Does he use the Rift?"

  
This got BEN thinking. An odd thing; as he had never thought about the fact that, since all Fears were barred from the Under-realm, it should have affected his friend too. "Well, he is the Fear of the Abnormal; he lives for subverting the norm. It wouldn't surprise me if that was some power of his, but he probably does just use the Rift. That thing is the ultimate backdoor, after all."

  
Yet, even with the Rift, Jeff still should have been forced out of the Under-realm, or be uncomfortable being there at least. Maybe he was? It would explain why he rarely stayed long. Not to mention the excuses he came up with for not sticking around. BEN had always found it hard to believe that he didn't want to be there, or help Slenderman; given all the favors he would do.

  
One of these days he was going to get it all from Jeff. Even if he had to pin him down and torture him. For now he would be satisfied knowing, like he always was, that Jeff hated most other Fears. Now that he knew some had invaded the Under-realm it would light a fire under him to get this dealt with as fast as possible. Then they could all breath a sigh of relief. 


	37. Pandora's Box Would be Easier to Close

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't expect Amarynthia to be a recurring character but something about them is just so. . . charming. In a squishy lovecraftian way.

The SCP Foundation mail room was inundated with sightings of creatures, as always, most were ignored as the explanation was simple. A few were investigated, but more and more were being relegated to a pile meant for Jeff; things that fell under his jurisdiction. That pile had grown exponentially in the last few days. Particularly so after what the O5 were dubbing a "Mass Dimensional Breach".

  
When they realized the world had not collapsed around them, Amarythia left their office and reported to anyone who would listen what had transpired before the event; regulations be damned. Instead of being reprimanded, security was beefed up. The Foundation went so far as to bring in extra muscle; keeping the newbies in the dark as much as possible.

  
This went on for several days until, one morning, a heavy package dropped out of the ceiling onto Kondraki's desk; leaving a sizable dent in the wood. He nearly threw it away, a little put out by the damage, when he saw it came from Jeff. On seeing that he tore it open and found a metal couriers box with a note on it.

  
"I bet my mailbox is fillin' up, huh? Can't come collect it unfortunately. Just put the shit for me in here and leave it in a vent or somethin'. I'll get it. Here's a forward address for anythin' else of mine ya get."

  
Unphased by this, Kondraki did as it said; gathering all the reports meant for Jeff's review and neatly putting them in the box. He set aside the address to send down to the mail room later. As he placed the box inside the air vent he was hit with a blast of cold air that had nothing to do with the AC turning on. Deeper down the vent he could just hear the rattle of something multi-legged and metallic scuttling away from him.

  
~*~

  
Jeff snarled and lashed out with a tendril, collapsing a mailbox that had been too close to him. He had been searching for the Towerborn for the better part of the morning, keeping a close eye out for any possible others that escaped as well. So far, no such luck. He wanted to believe that it had simply returned to the Tower and the Manufactured Newborn to do, whatever it was they did with the assimilated material, but he knew he wasn't lucky. He had too much bad karma against him.

  
"Whatever the reason; murder is murder, I guess. Damn me an' all that."

  
He put the mailbox back in order and shoved his hands in his pocket, lightly fingering his knife. As he strolled along the nearly empty streets (no one wanted to be out before the all clear was given) he thought briefly of going to the manor, but discarded the idea. They would all want to know if he had caught the Towerborn, and he hated to be seen as a failure.

  
There was plenty of evidence of the miniature invasion. Garbage cans and dumpsters were filled with the flesh and metal of the things, as if the residents hadn't really known what to do with the remains; which was likely as nothing like it had ever been in the Under-realm before. He gathered those up and dumped them in the Rift to dispose of them properly later. Either that or he would just huck them at the Newborn itself to establish dominance.

  
Yeah, that second one sounded better. Not to mention more fun.

  
Thinking of the Rift reminded him that he needed to go back to the Pines' house soon as well. BEN had been pestering him with messages about Dipper's website picking up speed again; this time with more sightings of creatures that were toeing the line of being Fear-related. So with nothing on his end he popped through the nearest doorway and headed there.

  
Jeff slowly opened the basement door and looked around, ears straining for sound. It was night in the Over-realm and the house was asleep. Mostly. He could hear the faint clack of Dipper's keyboard, as well as smell the faint ozone that clung to BEN like a second skin. He made his way upstairs and peeked in. As expected, both were awake and had their eyes glued to the computer screen.

  
"Y'know I hear that's bad for ya, but the fuck do I know."

  
Dipper jolted, only staying put by virtue of BEN grabbing him, simultaneously shooting him a dirty look. Jeff just chuckled. He leaned over Dipper's other shoulder to see just what had them so fascinated. Immediately he saw a collage of semi blurry and unnervingly clear photos of all manner of things. Clearly they had been collecting them to compare, judging from the open books and links that littered the desk. Jeff looked the collection over and found only a few connections.

  
While he examined these possible links, Dipper gave a frustrated huff and got out of the chair to pace; needing to move. "Good to see you back Jeff. I'm not going to ask about what you were doing; that's your business, but I was hoping you might be able to help here."

  
Jeff just nodded, still looking at the images. Like Dipper, he was trying to find anything he recognized, but was having just as much luck. He pulled out the Codex and started leafing through. Nothing it pulled up matched. _'So these things ain't comin' from either side. Gotta be Fears then. Problem is which ones?'_

  
The pictures weren't entirely clear, and the ones that were identifiable were just creatures from the Under-realm; albeit ones that didn't normally leave there. The book the Wanderer's Library showed him came unbidden and he fought to hide a shudder. If something like that was coming then he had to do something. But the fact that the twins wanted to be involved gave him pause; they had called for his help, he had to protect them. Yet they threw themselves into danger time and again, no doubt they would follow regardless of what he did to stop them.

  
Which left him with no other options but to come clean. He cleared his throat to get their attention. "Dipper, wake your sister up and get Danny. I got somethin' to tell ya'll."

  
Once it was all in the open Jeff flopped back on Dipper's bed, simultaneously relieved and paranoid about telling them. He looked up to gauge their reactions. BEN was simply waiting, too aware of the tension to say anything. Dipper had returned to thinking; already coming up with a plan most likely. Mabel seemed scared, but determined to do what she could.

  
As for Danny well, he was glaring at nothing, back arched and tail lashing. Jeff could only speculate on this reaction; it sent a whole new kind of chill down his spine. He let his head drop, staring at the ceiling. Dipper, now working on calming Danny, said. "I don't know if you expect us to be able to do anything. We still don't even know who started this or why. Maybe we can't even stop it."

  
That was an alarming thought that got everyone's attention. But Jeff put a stop to it before anyone could worry. "It can be stopped. It ain't gonna be a perfect solution, or pretty, but we can shut this bitch down. That journal showed it after all. And that's how the Wanderer's Library works, y'know. Can't change what it shows, just shows ya."

  
"As long as reality still exists." Mabel said, slowly cheering back up. Jeff nodded at her.

  
"Yep. Break it down an' build it again. Even if we never catch what caused it we can keep it from happenin' again."

  
It was short and rough, but it did the job. The tension in the room lessened. Neither Dipper or Danny missed the 'we' in Jeff's words. Both took comfort in that, as it meant he was no longer going to try and go it alone. Jeff was now more than willing to take help in this matter. Even if it felt like it was the only choice left.

  
In the meantime, they needed information, and lots of it; without splitting up again if possible. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we get to meet another Fear next chapter. . . and they're anything but nice


	38. Another Door and An Encounter with Loneliness

Life continued at its own pace in the Foundation; at least, that's how they made it look. Even an outside observer could see the way personnel would quicken their steps, faces tense and eyes looking everywhere, as they passed the former containment of 239; empty of everything. The effects of her passing lingered in the facility, and nowhere did it show more strongly than in the 093s, hairline cracks had begun to show on the stones themselves. The ghostly figures became more clear by the day, and researchers were beginning to feel threatened by them.

  
The fact that they were the same creatures from 093's universe did nothing to settle anyone's nerves. As a result, larger and larger parts of the facility were being put on lockdown, forcing personnel to take greater risk when seeing to maintenance. Back in their office, Amarynthia had yet to receive word from O5 on the situation; a fact that was making not just them, but many employees suspicious.

  
Doctor Kondraki had more or less asserted control of the Foundation in absence of communication. He, along with some of the other, more respected doctors, had taken it upon themselves to put hours into researching this latest phenomena. Multiple tests were performed on the SCP-914 in hopes of it relenting and providing a clue. But it seemed that any SCPs with any sort of future contact could not reveal anything.

  
The only one who had some sort of insight as to what was coming was SCP-990. Yet even his words were curt; stating that the future, in any capacity, was no longer so clear. No one knew what was going to happen and so anything was anticipated. It was enough to set even the calmest on edge, and on edge they were. Some had gotten desperate enough to try making deals with SCP-738 in an attempt to find anything. Of course those all went south.

  
A timid knock on the door broke Amarynthia from their thoughts. A scientist (they didn't know them) entered, only staying long enough to deposit a container before leaving. They gave a bubbling sigh, massaging their mantle. Ever since the Tears had begun leaking out of the mirrors it had been their job to analyze them for any possible changes. So far there was nothing, but O5 had been hounding them to keep at it, until recently at least, for any slight alteration in the composition.

  
So Amarynthia started the analysis, well prepared for another fruitless waste. As they poured the samples in the device they noted the fluid seemed a little thin. Perhaps something in the air here differed from that of the 093 universe, altering the viscosity. Odd that they had never noticed that before. They noted down a possible breakdown of the fluid outside the mirrors, then left the analyzer to do its work.

  
The only thing that came out was a rise in acidity and a larger than normal amount of minerals. The Tears weren't just leaking, they were eating away at the mirror and stones.

  
Inside 093's containment the smaller of the two stones cracked audibly, Tears flowing profusely from the crack, followed by a cold breeze.

  
_"So cold, someone, anyone. I'm lonely."_

  
~*~

  
The air was unseasonably cold when Danny woke that morning; in a way that had nothing to do with him. It felt more like midwinter than late autumn, and it set his tail writhing. The house was quiet as well, and that felt more unnatural than the cold. In fact, now that he was aware of it, there wasn't even white noise. No rattle-thump of the washing machine, no shuffle of sleeping bodies. Even the air had fallen still and silent.

  
Danny darted to the nearest window and found that it was dark outside, despite his internal clock saying it was precisely 6:32 in the morning and the sun should have been still rising. There was some light though, the eerie blue of a full moon. That just threw him off further as the full moon had already passed. This needed investigating.

  
Two minutes later and his investigation was seriously derailed by the discovery that all the doors were frozen shut. "So I'm stuck in here. Alone apparently. Whoever's messing with me is really going to get it. I hate this kind of joke."

  
He paced before the back door, wings twitching in the still air. He tried to get a read on the ice, to see if he could manipulate the energy in any way, but when he touched his horn to it he found it dead. There wasn't a trace of even the most residual power flowing. Somehow that disturbed him more than anything else.

  
Having had enough, Danny backed away and charged the door, horn aimed at the weakest point in the ice. It pierced through easily. Danny pulled back and started ramming it repeatedly, scything his horn up and down to clear the entry. He eventually scraped away enough to shove his way through. Outside was somehow even colder; cold enough that it even made him uncomfortable. Tucking his wings down and his tail close, Danny began searching for. . . anyone really.

  
He hesitated to say it was another dimension. A quick look around showed the same neighborhood, same houses; all covered in a thin layer of ice. It reminded him of that game he watched BEN play, the game had been awful, but he had been entranced by the visual of creeping ice. Remembering it he realized it gave him a very similar feeling as now. That of being alone.

  
Once he recognized it he could feel it pressing in on him from every corner and dark hole; trying to wiggle into his core. _'Jokes on them, ghosts process emotion differently from humans.'_

  
Trying to boost his confidence, he flipped his wings out and continued on with his head held high. He trotted down the road like this for a good while until the faint sound of crying got his attention. Suddenly worried for whoever else might be out in this, Danny dropped his act and darted after the sobs.

  
He followed them out of the neighborhood, all the way to the park; which still echoed with magic from Mabel's spell. _'That girl does not mess around with spells, oof.'_ There, sitting on the swings, was a young boy; no older than six or seven. Danny could see his shoulders heave from how hard he was crying. He stepped onto the playground, and the scrape of sand under his claws startled the boy; who watched him cautiously.

  
Even in the strange light being cast, Danny could see the boy was entirely blue; the same pale shade as his own skin. Even his eyes were the same color. There were icicles dripping off his chin. The boy was watching him with the same intensity, and smiled sadly at their similarity.

  
"Are you an ice ghost?" Danny asked, keeping his voice low. He had the strangest feeling that if he spoke too loudly the boy would simply vanish. The idea of being alone squeezed his core tightly, making him feel colder.

  
Danny took two steps toward the child before he caught the smell. That same scent of Otherness that had been spilling out so profusely, sticking to everything these days. The same scent that clung, however faintly, to Jeff.

  
The scent of Fear.

  
Danny was instantly on guard, ice crackling down his spine and over his body to shield himself. The child didn't seem interested in a fight, however, merely standing and watching as if hoping he could come closer. And come closer he did, tail arched threateningly and claws shining. If this. . . thing hoped to catch him off guard it would have to try very hard.

  
Yet when he drew closer he found himself, ironically enough, frozen. He looked around as though seeing the world for the first time. A powerful loneliness pressed in, drawing memories of those he loved and freezing them away. He curled in on himself and began trembling, slowly falling down. Tears falling as he stared uncomprehending.

  
Only when he was on the ground did the boy approach. He raised Danny's head and gave another sad smile. _"I'm lonely too. And so cold. Let's stay together."_

  
The ice fell off Danny and he went still, eyes closing. "That sounds. . . nice. We can be friends."

  
As he said this images began flashing in his mind, breaking free of the boy's spell. His first meeting with Dipper, the twins making him a den in the Shack. As he thought of the Shack, more memories came loose; the strongest of them were the moments he shared with Dipper.

  
The boy frowned as Danny began to move, shaking off the effects. He tried to touch his forehead, the movement triggering Danny's instincts. He lunged, burying his horn in the boy's hand. Icy blood leaked down over his eyes and hunger took over; his eyes went pure blue. His last conscious thought was the look in the boy's eyes as he pounced. _'A Fear afraid. Funny.'_

  
At home Dipper jerked awake. The horn was buzzing against his chest, pulsing with an odd mix of color. The vibration was unpleasant to say the least, as it made him think of when Danny lost his mind during Weirdmaggedon. That sent him springing out of bed, he searched the house; growing increasingly concerned when the ghost king didn't appear.

  
Abruptly the horn stopped buzzing and began going cold. Alarmed, Dipper pulled it out and saw frost forming on its surface. A pale echo of emotion came through; utter loneliness. Concern turned to outright panic as he suddenly became filled with a feral need to bite and tear; only slightly dulled by the solitude still coming through the horn. He wanted to throw it away, to stop this urge from growing. But he didn't, because doing so would shrink his chances of finding Danny before the now feral ghost did serious damage. To himself or others.

  
Brandishing the horn like a dowsing rod made daggers, Dipper burst from the broken door and chased the buzzing thing down the street. It nearly dragged him to the community park where he saw Danny, full sized, a limp humanoid form dangling from his jaws. The horn began vibrating so strongly it felt like he was holding a livewire; nearly making him drop it again.

  
He took one step towards Danny and it was like stepping into another world. Somehow, as though he'd blinked, everything around him was covered in ice. A prickling numbness was spreading fast, moving up his legs and making him stumble. Undeterred by the changes in environment he continued towards Danny. In the new light he could see how unnatural the boy was; the skin glistening like snow.

  
His approach went unnoticed; Danny continued to worry his prey. He reared back and hurled him to the ground, where he shattered. But he didn't stop there, he continued to break parts of the boy; trying to smash him to slush. At this point Dipper was close enough to see the pure ecstasy for destruction in Danny's eyes. He cared about nothing but seeing this creature, and who knows what else, crushed to nothing.

  
The look spurred Dipper to action. Ignoring the numbness that had reached his waist, he launched himself forwards and grabbed Danny around the neck, pulling himself up to his ear and shouting as loud as he could now that the cold had reached his lungs.

  
"Danny! DANNY IT'S DONE! He's done. . ." His voice fell to a rough whisper as his grip loosened and he dropped.

  
Right into Danny's arms. The ghost stared blankly at him, forcing Dipper to get them both out of there. Dipper threw his arms around Danny's neck again and pulled him away from the corpse, now steaming slightly in the sun. It was hard going; ghost or not, he wasn't exactly a feather weight. By the time he got them out of the park he was sweating. On the bright side, the world returned to normal outside too.

  
With an eye on Danny, he took some police tape out of his vest and hung it across the park entrance. As an afterthought he tied a small talisman to the tape. It wasn't charged, so it wouldn't keep anything in or out, but that wasn't the point. People would see it and know to stay out because something magickal had happened. Right now that was all he could ask for.

  
He spent a few minutes considering just how he would move Danny, who was still in shock and very much not moving. No amount of shoving and heaving would get the endigo on his feet, let alone walking. So he stayed. It was still early morning, and with the weekend no one would be out yet. Danny had slumped down, and was curled up, tail tucked over his nose. Dipper couldn't think of how to snap him out of it other than to just stay close.

  
So he climbed on Danny's back and lay there, brushing his hand gently through the misty mane. Slowly, he felt Danny relax under him and start to purr. When both the ghost and the horn fragment stopped trembling he climbed down and sat by Danny's head. There were still tears on his face, but his eyes had returned to normal. He turned to look at him, ears drooping. He hiccuped slightly. "Don't leave. Don't leave me alone, Dipper."

  
Dipper pressed closer and wiped away the tears. Having calmed down just a little, Danny shrank again, just a bit taller than Dipper, and sat down facing him. Dipper titled his head down and pressed the foreheads together, their own way of showing affection. "Never. No matter what. I promise."

  
He sat back and grinned. "I'd fight a hundred Bills by myself if I had to."

  
The show of bravado cheered him immensely; enough for him to pick himself up and for the two to go home. Danny draped his tail across Dipper's shoulders, enjoying the feeling of, well, feeling, coming back to his hands and paws. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little bit of sweetness between a boy and his ghost. The Cold Boy (the fear in this chapter) is the fear of isolation. Being left alone is something Danny always feared in canon, I thought if it would hit anyone hardest it'd be him.


	39. Alone Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny's suffering the after affects of the Cold boy's attack, leading Dipper to suffer a crisis. Minor warnings for this chapter include; references to self harm in the form of hair pulling with some blood.

The house was still quiet when they returned. They first stopped in the kitchen. To the surprise of both of them, the back door was intact; not even a trace of the damage Danny had done to it. He traced his claws gently down the surface and growled quietly. "That boy, no, that thing. It smelled like Jeff."

  
"Then Jeff will know it." Both avoided referring to the boy as human in anyway, preferring to objectify it to make Danny's ruthless dispatching of it settle in their conscious. This was made easier by the clear fact that, whatever the boy was, his intentions had been bad. Inflicting the pain of complete isolation on others while fooling them into thinking he was their only friend. At least, that's how it seemed to Dipper.

  
With no ice anywhere in the house the two were forced to accept that they had been pulled into another reality, however temporarily. Danny still seemed exhausted from the whole ordeal, having taken the brunt of the boy's powers himself. Dipper was only a little worn, and so spent his time getting the other in a place he could recover. This involved getting him on Dipper's bed in such a way that he could squeeze in beside him.

  
From there Dipper kept close to watch for any changes, letting him feed on whatever energy he needed. This decision, unfortunately, left him stuck in bed with little to do. He hadn't put any of his books or notes close enough to go through; this was due to a promise to Mabel for no more all-nighters, on purpose anyway. As he laid there, getting bored, his computer crackled to life. BEN popped out with a burst of noisy static that made Dipper cover Danny's ears, even though it was probably too late. Thankfully, Danny didn't wake up; merely giving a lazy flick of the ear. Dipper motioned him over, a finger on his lips.

  
BEN spotted him and glitched to the bed, giving a concerned glance at its other occupant. "What happened to him? I've never seen him look so out of it."

  
Dipper muttered to himself for a second, getting the events in order. "He found some sort of. . . trap. It was in the park, set by a kid; looked like a kid anyway."

  
BEN blinked. "Wait, 'looked like'? What does that mean?"

  
"They, it, looked human, but they were made of ice. Everything around them was frozen." Dipper started to tremble, that horrible emptiness coming back. "Danny killed them, I think. He said it smelled like Jeff."

  
"So another Fear, then. What did it do to him?"

  
Dipper brushed a wing gently. "I don't know what exactly. When I got close I felt, cold, kind of like I was nothing. I can't imagine how bad that must have been for him."

  
BEN stayed silent, thinking. He had been looking into the whole phenomenon since the Newborn's apparent raid on the Under-realm, but had found little beyond what Jeff had already learned. Even though they existed all over the world, very few Fears were overt in their behavior, relying instead on their servants to do their work for them. Only those in the higher tiers acted on their own. Unfortunately, BEN didn't know the hierarchy, if there was one.

  
The only thing he could do was leave the two alone while he went looking for answers. As always, Jeff's book was his first choice. _'If he hasn't left with it again.'_

  
Luck was with him this time, as the book was lying open on Dipper's desk. He took it up to the roof to look through it. Dipper watched him until he could hear the footsteps above, then turned his attention back to his bed partner. Danny had gotten some color back during BEN's visit. He looked more relaxed as well. So Dipper took the chance to slip out of bed and take care of a few things; most importantly, brushing his teeth. And breakfast, couldn't forget that. It was amazing and worrying that his stomach hadn't woken Danny. He was usually the first to notice when someone needed to eat; often before they did.

  
He ate breakfast quickly and rushed back to his room. Danny hadn't moved and he wasn't sure if that was relieving or just more cause to worry. He climbed back in bed to check on him and found a thin layer of frost forming on his forehead. His cheeks were tinged green and his breathing came fast with a faint rattle. Dipper went into panic mode. _'Oh crap, he's sick! Wait can a ghost even get sick? No, shut up he needs, he needs. . . WHAT DO YOU GIVE A SICK GHOST?!'_

  
BEN was shaken from the book (so far fruitlessly searched) by the sound of footsteps thundering up to the roof. After the summers in Gravity Falls, their parents quickly learned that the twins felt safest on the roof when something was happening. In an effort to support them, a hatch had been installed. It was this hatch that Dipper came flying out of, almost tumbling off the roof. BEN caught him and yanked him flat on his back. "You look like you just finished a marathon."

  
Dipper took a few gasping breaths before grabbing BEN. "Do you get sick?!"

  
"What? Yeah, I'm not completely non-corporeal, I can catch a cold. Usually when I'm really tired though."

  
_'Okay, tired. That makes sense. Danny's really worn out and it made him sick.'_ Dipper calmed down enough to ask. "Is there any medicine for stuff like that?"

  
Even an idiot could tell what he was getting at. BEN stood up, handing him the book and hopped down the hatch. Dipper followed him. "Yeah, after I got sick the first time Miss P made some junk for me. I don't know if it works on other kinds of ghosts. Of course, I didn't know there WERE other kinds of ghosts, but I'll ask her to whip something up."

  
The promise of medicine brought Dipper completely back from his panic high. It also brought him the reminder that he had left Danny on his own. He was still recovering from the boy's power, who knew how he would react to finding himself alone for real. He skidded to a stop at the door and found Sir Wiggles draped on his shoulder, licking his cheek. Dull, sightless eyes watched him as he approached, but Wiggles didn't move.

  
"Come on Wiggles, leave him alone. He's sick."

  
Wiggles still didn't move. Instead it pressed down, as if daring him to try and shift it. Exhausted from the burst of adrenaline and the lizard's antics, he just huffed and climbed on the bed again. Wiggles hissed and scrambled away. Once again it was just the two of them. Dipper lightly touched Danny's face. He didn't know what a normal temperature for him was but the freezing sweat was enough to tell him he was running a fever.

  
_'Okay so he's pretty sick apparently. How do I bring his temperature down? He'll probably freeze any water I put near him. Wait, what about his powers? I don't know enough to help him properly. All I can do is stay by him.'_

  
He sighed. "Just like always. All I can do is sit and wait for everyone else to fix it."

  
Dipper growled and began pulling his hair. "I can never do anything for him! I'M SO USELESS!"

  
There was a painful sting in his scalp, and he looked down to see he had pulled out a little hair. He stared at the strands, some blood sticking them together, feeling numb to the wetness in his hair. He didn't notice the bed dipping under him until Danny's hands covered his own. The ghost leaned against his back, wings coming around to hold him closer. Dipper turned and saw his eyes were barely open, but even still he had woken up to comfort him.

  
"Never say that, Dipper." He wheezed. "You AREN'T useless. Even if you can't help physically, you help me mentally. You keep me grounded when my instincts get the better of me. Your voice was the only one that reached when Bill left me a wild husk. Not even my sister could snap me out of that. But YOU DID. Never forget that."

  
Dipper felt him shiver through his back. He gave another rattling breath and continued. "That's why. . . why I want you with me. You help me remember who I am, just by being around. I know it sounds cheesy, but it's why I love you."

  
Dipper choked, tears looming in his eyes. He said it. Not once in the three years they had spent together did either of them ever say it. They both felt it, sure, but both were afraid to ruin what they had to put a voice to the feeling. Yet there it was. At this point there was no other way for him to respond but in kind. He dropped the hair to the ground and turned to face Danny, pulling him as close as he could and hugging him tight.

  
"I love you too. Forever. Not even death would change that."

  
It was rough, and gravely as a dirt road from sickness, but Danny's purr quickly filled the room. The sound calmed them both and soon soothed them to rest; wrapped in each other. Amidst the calm, BEN came crackling into the room. In his hands was a small jar of something that looked like red jellybeans, and smelled like chamomile and cinnamon. Seeing the two sleeping, he set the jar, along with a note, on the desk and silently backed out of the room to see if Jeff was around. The sound roused Dipper just long enough to see the medicine on the desk. He smiled, then went back to sleep.

  
Jeff was outside, poking around in the bushes. He wasn't looking for anything, he was just doing it. BEN recognized the act for what it was however. Jeff hated having to stay in one place. It was probably why he had been so eager to look for outside help. Being here was giving him cabin fever. BEN also knew the only reason he was staying at all was that he was worried for the twins. If this apocalypse did happen, it stood to reason that it would center on them. Jeff wasn't about to let them deal with it alone, even if he had to make himself crazy.

  
BEN called out to him, giving him ample warning. He was still startled though. Jeff went back to pacing the yard almost immediately. So BEN took the bait. "Alright, this whole thing clearly has you wound up. Who was it and how bad is that they're dead?"

  
This broke him out of his rut. "Dead? Danny actually killed him?"

  
"Well considering Dipper said it was just a pile of melting slush in the shape of a kid. I'd say yeah. He wrecked him."

  
"So Cold Boy's dead. Well, fuck me. I didn't think ya could actually kill a Fear. Maybe it's a sign of the times." He paced again, doing a few laps before stopping with an angry grunt. "I promised I'd stay, but I gotta figure this shit out! And I ain't doin' that pokin' bushes. Sorry BEN I gotta go."

  
He didn't wait for response or protest, just hopped the fence and left again. BEN sighed, taking off his hat to fiddle with it. This was going to put a damper on things. He looked down and saw the book still in his arm. "At least I can do something to help. Now that I know what we're dealing with."

  
With this in mind BEN took the book back up to Dipper and the two began looking up all they could about the Fears. From both humans and other monsters.


	40. Fear Rising

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jeff has gone off on his own again. This time back to the Foundation, only to find his quarry and an interesting lady.

Despite his promise to not split off from the others, Jeff found himself in the Foundation once again. The place had changed drastically from the last time he was here, and he found himself using shortcuts to get around the place a lot more. Not wanting to get wrapped up in something outside his reasons for coming, Jeff stuck to the vents and shadows, keeping out of sight as much as possible.

  
A major power shift had happened in the world, he knew that. As for what caused it, well, that was one of the things he hoped to learn by coming here. Everywhere else had lead to either a dead end or just another thing to add to his growing list of crap. Frankly, he was getting annoyed with it all.

  
He was shaken from his thoughts when he passed the room of SCP-239. Usually Jeff would hear the white noise of the machines that kept her alive. Now? Nothing.

  
A deep sense of unease settling in his bones, he popped open the vent and found the room empty. Only the faint smell of electricity and medicine remained. With growing concern he climbed down the wall and stuck low to the ground as he crawled around the room. What had happened to her? She had never been exactly healthy; the power to change reality was taxing in any dimension, or at any age. With how quiet the room was he had a little more than a hunch that she had kicked it.

  
If that was it then why all the extra security? Perhaps her death had been the ignition point that started this garbage fire, or it was just a signal for the real culprit. With so many bizarre events coinciding, Jeff was firmly convinced it was all planned.

  
Jeff peeked out of the room to find the entire area had been sealed off. As in cement walls had been put up. He growled and turned around, popping through the Rift to get to the other side of the walls. It was practically a ghost town there. He could hear people moving in the distance, but not a one set foot anywhere near the place.

  
As he moved, still keeping out of sight, towards Kondraki's office, he found the abandoned halls haunted by small and not so small versions of the so called Unclean. The beasts that lurked inside 093's universe. The sight set him moving faster, completely forgetting about being spotted. He had been in the world beyond 093, and seen what those things could do. He had no desire to experience that fate. Thankfully the things were as deaf as they were blind, and didn't see his mad dash to the next vent system.

  
Getting to his destination presented a new problem. The office was a wreck, and the stench of broken tech was overpowering. He entered the same as he had before, sticking to the walls and keeping an eye on the overturned furniture for potential danger. He heard a faint ticking of metal on metal, coming from the shredded file cabinets. With all the zeal of a kitten on nip, Jeff flung himself from the wall into the tangled mess; suffering several deep cuts in the process. When he stumbled out he was gripping the missing Towerborn, now the size of a calf and busily trying to consume the file cabinet, files and all.

  
Without wasting a beat, he tore the material from its chelicerae and slammed it against the walls and floor; flinging it by its scorpion like spinal cord of a tail. He bashed it over and over until there was nothing left but a mushed pile of metal and biomass. This he dumped in the Rift for later Newborn pelting as well. Satisfied, he wiped the remaining gunk on his hoodie. "Not what I expected to be doin' when I got here, but I ain't gonna complain. Only thing left is to find Kon-kon. Hope he ain't got his ass killed by that thing."

  
Kondraki was safe, if more than a little miffed. Apparently the Towerborn had gotten the drop on him; quite literally, as it fell out of the vent while he was typing a report. He was currently boarded in a supply closest two doors down, and listening to the ruckus Jeff was making. Only when he heard the Fear talking to himself did he leave his shelter. He came in in time to see Jeff drop a wet _something_ down a hole he made in the floor.

  
Jeff locked eyes with him and smirked. "So whattya think of my little pal?"

  
"That thing was yours?"

  
He burst out laughing, hauling a largely undamaged chair out for the doctor to sit on. "Fuck no. I been tryin' to find that thing since it got loose! Blows my damn mind that it got here though. Speakin' of which. . . the fuck's been goin' on 'round here? Other than 239 bitin' it."

  
"A lot has happened. There was a major power surge that took the whole place out; even killed our emergency generators somehow. We didn't even realize she had passed until the majority of the breaches had been dealt with. For some reason her death affected nearly every interdimensional SCP onsite. But 093 is the worst offender. I'm guessing you saw our new. . . guests?"

  
"How could I miss 'em?"

  
"093 cracked. The stone's are breaking down. I don't know what will happen when they completely dissolve but I don't want to be around for it. They showed up after and they're getting more real by the day."

  
"And nothin' can fix 'em I'm guessin'." He sighed and then, on seeing Kondraki's face, asked. "That's not all is it?"

  
That sparked an entire list of things that had happened and were, apparently, still happening. The whole of the mess was wearing on all of them. With no solution forthcoming and O5 still not communicating with anyone their resources were stretching thing. Jeff, admittedly, tuned out most of it. Until Kondraki brought him back with a crash.

  
"Not to mention that bizarre flood in the lower levels. Came of out of nowhere and filled the whole basement. Everyone we sent down to fix it came back. . . wrong."

  
The words sent a tingle down his spine, making his tendrils emerge fully, writhing in preparation for potential havoc. "What kind of wrong?"

  
Kondraki removed his glasses, setting them on the still standing remains of his desk. "Like zombies, sort of. They barely moved at all so we quarantined them. Over the week they changed. Not physically, but mentally. It was like they had been regressed to children in mind. We thought they were recovering. Especially when they began speaking again, but it wasn't the right way. They just repeated words and actions; any movement around them they mimicked. Since then we've had them in containment. Which doesn't even seem necessary as all they do is stand around. Unless given a direct order, that is."

  
Jeff only had one word for the situation. "Fuck."

  
~*~

  
Kondraki had taken the chance after that reaction to vent to Jeff about everything going on both on and off site. For his part Jeff had largely tuned this out as well, though not for lack of interest. His attention was mostly taken up by the flooding. All the symptoms Kondraki described were familiar to him; he'd encountered plenty of humans in a similar state. He did want to make sure it was the same situation though. "I wanna see these poor bastards if I can."

  
It took some prodding as most of the victims had been terminated for safety purposes. A few had been contained however, for study, in the basic human chambers. It was here that they went. Jeff couldn't stop the nostalgia that rose up as they walked through. After all, he had spent his first few months in the Foundation inside one of these rooms. Many would think that, with what they were used for, that such facilities were dull and dreary. Designed to demoralize their occupants. The reality was quite the opposite. The rooms were well and comfortably furnished (within regulations, of course) and kept brightly lit and open.

  
Kain had once told him it was to inspire "cooperation through healthy environments", and it seemed to work. Most of the time. There was always the few who were just too confrontational for it to work on. Jeff knew that wouldn't be a problem with this lot.

  
He was eventually brought into one of the testing areas and made to wait while security brought in the affected personnel.

  
There was four of them, all of them stumbling as they were shoved in the room; like they didn't know how legs worked. A bulletproof glass partition split the room to keep observers a safe distance from test subjects. As Jeff stepped closer to the glass, one of the subjects followed, even walking on her toes to imitate his stance. He shouted a few orders and watched them fumble to action; taking his words literally. There was one other thing he wanted to test, but he knew no one would like him doing it.

  
 _'That shit never stopped me before.'_ He shrugged. With a low pulse of energy he knocked out the cameras and lights just long enough for him to pass the glass and get to the other side. The lights came on right as he buried the knife in the female subject; she went down without a cry, staring at the wound like she didn't understand it. Which only confirmed his theory. Those who had gone in the water had become Campers; meaning EAT was the source of the water. Or he hoped It was.

  
Now he crouched down and collected a handful of the blood-tainted water pouring from her open stomach. He ignored the outraged shouts of the testers as they hustled the remaining subjects out of the test room. He cupped the water in his hands and brought it to his face, careful not to let it inside him. Agreement or not, her ink would not recognize him through another Camper; best to play it safe. Still, he gave the water a tentative sniff, catching the slight tang that was particular to his kind; along with a whiff of something particular to her.

  
It all added together to one, or rather two, entities. Both were Fears, but only one he could talk sense to. "About damn time things started tiltin' in our direction." 


	41. An Ally Arrives

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jeff's stay in the Foundation leads him to a Fear that isn't out to get him for once.

After a lot more pestering and trading of information, a large part of which was omitted by Jeff as the Foundation already had their plates full; Jeff finally convinced Kondraki to take him down to the flooded levels. Kondraki's description of the victims, and his own inspection, had more or less confirmed the identity of this particular problem. Now he just hoped It was in the mood to talk.

  
The only snag was that Jeff had to wait for an armed escort before he could even be allowed to leave the test chamber again. That took too long for him to be comfortable with. So he just grabbed Kondraki and took off, leaving the escort to play catch up.

  
What Kondraki had failed to mention was that the flooding had steadily gotten worse since it started. The levels had risen considerably; swallowing half the stairwell by the time Jeff had even entered the Foundation. The sound of water reached them in record time; less a flooded room and more like a lake on a windy day. Jeff could see the wet walls where ambitious waves had splashed in their constant dance.

  
The crystal butterflies abandoned Kondraki and buried themselves in his hair to keep dry, making Jeff itch and struggle not to dislodge them. The butterflies were, not frightened exactly, but perturbed. Enough to abandon their usual swarming behavior. Kondraki cursed at them, which made Jeff laugh. At the sound the water gurgled and stilled. Jeff took a step forward to investigate but was stopped by the doctor. "The only report we got from the teams mentioned it doing this. Possibly as a lure."

  
He waved the doctor off and shook the butterflies from his hair, not wanting their wings to get wet. The color of the water, clean blue despite the amount of dust and dirt it must surely have swept up, proved beyond a doubt just who he was dealing with. Once he had removed the last of the butterflies he took the steps two at a time to reach the surface.

  
The water sloshed almost cheerfully as he approached. He heard the agents raising their guns, almost laughing at the idiocy of shooting water. Jeff reached the last available step and jumped down, landing in water up to his waist. Though it looked still, Jeff could feel it pressing in around him; feeling him out. Tiny currents slipped around his thighs, almost sensually. Though he knew EAT was not capable of such desires.

  
He bowed, taking care not to let the water touch his lips. "Lady Salmacis."

  
The water pulled away from him, swirling upwards in the center of the room. It gradually shaped itself into the form of a young woman, nude and featureless, watery tentacles stretching from her back. Jeff kept his eyes down, waiting for some sort of signal before he could look. The silence stretched on until he could feel the guns aimed for his back. Then the woman put a hand on his hair, soaking it in seconds.

  
The sign given, he heaved a sigh of relief and straightened up. Salmacis nodded to him, and, like a spell had been cast, he started talking. He told her everything, even the things he hadn't meant to. That was just how it was with her. Salmacis was one of the few who could affect him; exactly the reason he had chosen to ally himself instead of fight as he had other Fears. It had just as many questions as he did sadly.

  
Jeff sat down, EAT's ink thickening to support him. "For a hive mind ya sure don't know much, eh?"

  
The waves brushed past him as Salmacis moved to sit beside him, mimicking his stance. "We know only what Our Campers know. There has never been an event like this before. Fears have always kept to their own realms when not interacting with humanity. But do not fret, my knight, when the time comes We shall bring our full force to bear on the issue."

  
EAT never spoke itself, but he could feel by the way it pressed around him that her words were truth. It wasn't until it left that he realized just how much tension he had been carrying over all this. The sheer relief made him collapse into EAT, falling on his back and just floating, feeling boneless. A vibration in the water and the shaking of Salmacis' shoulders meant he was being laughed at. He didn't mind, just got his legs under him. "Thanks. Just remember; if ya come to see me leave the folks inside alone. Ya know how I get."

  
"Only Campers shall show themselves. To watch and nothing more. You have Our word."

  
With that Salmacis collapsed back into EAT. Jeff said his goodbyes to Kondraki and the agents and slipped through the door, not even bothering to explain anything. No one minded; they were used to it from him.  
Salmacis' cooperation was greatly appreciated; the hive mind was easily one of his strongest allies in terms of sheer numbers. The Campers were a global presence thanks to EAT's method of spreading through water. Unlike the Hollowed that sometimes resulted from Slenderman's proxy attempts, Campers could take complex orders. There weren't as durable though. Hollowed were basically zombies without the smell.

  
While he was eager to bring good news back to Dipper and the others, he still took a detour; heading to the Rift to decompress. He really hadn't had that much time on his own recently. Either he was looking for info, talking to someone, or holed up in the Pines' house while Dipper did his own research. It was maddening now that he thought about it. So he decided to hang around for a bit, just by himself. Who knows, maybe he could pick up a few more helpers on the way.

  
Actually that was a good idea. Of course, he wasn't going to jump on it. If he bumped into any other Fears he worked with he would ask. He only jumped on It being at the Foundation to get EAT to pull rank. With the other Fears acting out the power balance was shifting, and for all that he tried to keep his distance from it, he was still a Fear. This balance was just as important for him.

  
The only issue remaining was the one they all had at the start. If this didn't happen naturally then who started it? And, probably more important, why?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EAT is probably my favorite Fear; representing a pretty interesting mix of drowning and depersonalization; specifically loss of self to the collective. Salamacis is an incarnation EAT uses to communicate with certain individuals.


	42. The Evening Report

Three hours later, Jeff was no closer to a solution than when this mania began. Even after reporting to the Boogeymen. All they had given him was a vague shrug. As much as a shapeless mass of darkness can shrug, that is. They did, however, tell him that, while the barrier between the realms of mind and reality had never broken, there had been an incident three years ago where a dream demon managed to merge the dimensions together.

  
**_"BUT,"_** They had said, **_"We are not the ones to ask about this. Speak to your human companions if you wish to know that story."_ ** After that they just reminded him that he would be granted amnesty from whatever methods he chose to fix it. Even if it meant murdering a possible multi-dimensional entity, or two. In fact, the way they spoke it was almost like they were basically ordering him to do that. Before he left they requested he visit a weaponsmith to acquire a better knife. The idea offended him greatly but he kept his mouth shut. His knife was already the best there could be.

  
After that he did manage to run into a couple of other friends among the Fears; namely the Smiling Man and the Black Dog. Though he ultimately failed to recruit them, as both were satisfied with their roles in the universe, they did confirm what he knew. Something or someone had opened a path for them. Black Dog believed, however, that their growing freedom was merely a side effect. That whoever opened the door had merely done so to escape their current state.

  
"Someone who acts without givin' a damn 'bout the consequences. Plenty of those in the world, not enough to do somethin' like this, though. Fuck."

  
They did also promise to keep an eye out for anyone who may be interested. The Smiling Man encouraged him to look for other Fears, as well.

  
Which is how Jeff found himself in The Gale Tempest, the most hostile of the domains, talking to the literal force of nature that was the Typhoon. Yelling was a better word though, as the constant pounding rain and roaring winds around him was almost deafening; made only worse when the Typhoon moved closer to better hear him. Eventually he was forced to use his tendrils to communicate; using them to sign in a way it could see. This was much better for both of them.

  
It took the rest of the day to hash out a plan. Like EAT, Typhoon was powerful and preferred to reign itself in. It would only act if the situation became dire, and only if others failed. That was enough for Jeff, who quickly made his exit. Completely soaked from the perpetual rainstorm of The Gale Tempest, he finally went straight back to the Pines' for a nice warm bath. This time he took the measure of locking the bathroom door to prevent any unwanted visitors.

  
He didn't catch himself dozing off until he woke up to someone knocking on the door. Jeff was tense until he heard Mabel shouting. "Come on, I have to pee! I won't look if you don't!"

  
He laughed, then unlocked the door with a tendril, closing his eyes. The bathroom was quiet while Mabel went about her business, but it was as she washing her hands that she started on him. "So, where'd you go? I thought we were going to stick together."

  
Jeff slid down in the water, grumpy noises making the water bubble. He draped himself over the edge, just letting the water drip off. "I know, I know. But I thought of somethin' I needed to check. Didn't work out but I got some back up when shit hits the fan."

  
"Anything. . . more useful?"

  
"Uh, guess it depends on how your brother takes it. I mean, I been thinkin' it since the start but." He shrugged. "I dunno. Lemme just finish up in here and we'll see, yeah?"

  
Mabel gave a cheery nod and skipped out to get her brother. Jeff laid back in the tub until the water started getting cold. Unlike his last bath, 'Shit how long's it been since I last washed? No wonder everyone was keepin' their distance.', Jeff was careful to drain the tub and dry off so he didn't leave any puddles for others to slip on. When he left he found Toby waiting for him. The proxy grabbed his arm and dragged him to (where else?) Dipper's room. Not even waiting for him to get dressed again.

  
Dipper was awake and waiting, but Danny was still asleep; his head resting in the other's lap. He was rather surprised to find the other proxies there as well. Apparently BEN had sent word down the line and Slender sent them back up. Jeff stood by the bed, just looking at Danny for a moment. Then his eyes slid to the jar on the bedstand; Miss P's handwriting easily visible thanks to the glitter pen she used. "Cold Boy hit 'im hard, looks like. Ya get 'im to take any of these yet?"

  
"A few, but I don't really know what they're supposed to do."

  
Jeff picked up the jar and sniffed the contents, the spicy smell of cinnamon hit and made him sneeze. Warming pills, with a spell for mental recovery. "Just thaw 'im out a bit. Bring 'im back to normal. He sleepin' alright?"

  
"He's having nightmares; I can tell. But he won't wake up."

  
Jeff kept that worrying news in mind as he filled them all in. Unlike Kondraki, he told this little group everything; they were practically family after all. _'Huh, wonder when that happened.'_

  
Knowing they had not one, but two powerful Fears on their side brought an almost audible sense of ease to the room. At least until Jeff turned to Dipper with a particular look in his eye. "There's somethin' I wanted to ask ya about. Explain this whole 'weirdmaggedon' biz."

  
Even though they knew they would have had to eventually, neither Mabel or Dipper spoke up. They stayed quiet for a long time. It was one of the worst things to ever happen to either of them; both still had nightmares from it from time to time. Nearly losing each other, losing Grunkle Stan. They were deep scars, and Jeff had basically just torn them open again. Dipper took a steadying breath, keeping one hand on Danny's cheek for support.

  
"If you think it'll help. Then fine. But we're only going to tell you once. And only you. Everyone else has to leave."

  
There was some grumbling, mostly from Toby who had honestly wanted to know, but they managed to get everyone to go. Leaving just the three of them an the still unconscious Danny.

  
"First, you need to know about Bill Cipher. . . "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Fears in this chapter. The Smiling Man; fear of strangers, serial killers and of being stalked. The Black Dog; the fear of guilt/secrets, it torments its victims with objects related to their secret until they reveal it, if they don't it kills them.   
> Lastly, the Typhoon is the fear of Natural Disasters/storms.


	43. Once More into the Rift

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper learns a lesson in why you shouldn't trust BEN with drugs.

"Seriously, this again?" Danny asked in exasperation. "At least I have some idea what's going on this time. Not that it helps much."

  
While he was sleeping off the Cold Boy's effects he had woken up to find himself, once again, in the Rift. Human as well, just like the last time. Where he was in it he didn't know, but he remembered Jeff's advice and was determined to stay put. Unfortunately, the Rift didn't agree with his plans. Not a minute after his arrival the entire area shifted on its own, dropping him in a town the likes of which he had never seen.

  
The buildings, the streets, even the sky was white. No color anywhere. Unless you counted the stark black outlines of everything as color. It was like a child's drawing brought to life. The whole thing sat in his stomach like a rock. He turned around to see the door was gone; leaving a brick wall before him and a chiaroscuro nightmare behind. He sagged. "Of course it is. Can't make anything easy can you?"

  
So now he was wandering again, hoping against hope to find the Wub-beast plains; at least then he would be somewhere familiar. As for what came next, well, he just had to try and stay there until Jeff could find him. Easy enough, but the city was impossible to navigate. It wasn't just because of the monochrome color palette either; more than once Danny had found himself back on a street he just left.

  
Out of growing frustration he punched a road sign, bending it in half. He didn't see this or the burst of blue flame that ran down his spine at his outburst. What he did see was the sign wriggle and sink into the ground with a low squeal of metal. Around him the city stays still, but he can feel it close in on him; invisible eyes lock on him from every corner. A manhole suddenly appears and opens up under him, dropping him.

  
Right on the thick, furry hide of a Wub-beast. He bounced a bit then rolled off to land on the grass. Surprisingly without harm. He stood, more than a little shaken, and simply watched the creatures move for a time. The air is calm here, to his considerable relief. Above he can just hear the music the beasts play; this time a gentle lullaby with some quiet synthesizers thrown in.

  
He stayed, still watching the beasts, long enough to notice that he wasn't being shipped to some other part of the Rift. From what he could tell the Wub-beasts were the reason for this brief stability, so he risked climbing up one again. Though he stayed away from the head this time. Sure enough, the beasts and their plains stayed, and he stayed with them. "I guess once you're here stuck. How weird."

  
He couldn't tell how much time was passing, and it wasn't just because he was human. Even during his short trip with Jeff he had felt lost. His connection with Clockwork's tower, the reason he could feel the flow of time, was cut off thoroughly. 

  
"Maybe when all this is said and done I can get Jeff to bring me through a bit. Wear a camera for Dipper to study the place. If anyone can puzzle it out it's him."  
As though in agreement, the Wub-beast he sat on began playing Yeah by OMFG. Danny laughed at the absurdity of it. 

  
Danny sat on the beast's back for what felt like a couple of hours at least; the place hadn't changed any so he assumed his theory was right. It was around then that he noticed the music getting quieter, slowly being replaced by a dull roar. Danny quickly sat up to see the herd of Wub-beasts was heading straight for a cliff! One by one they walked straight off, uncaring of their doom. Danny jumped off, uncaring of his current condition, and rolled away as his own ride tumbled over the edge.

  
Heart pounding, which almost scared him more than what had just happened, he crept to the edge and peeked over. Much to his surprise there was actually a bottom; he had been expecting more empty void, but a bottom there was. Though he couldn't see it very well due to the masses of dead Wub-beasts rotting down there. Rather than stay for more Danny decided to find a different place to wait. Just a little ways off he could see what looked like a cathedral, so he headed there; preferring the idea of having a roof over his head instead.

  
~*~

  
Dipper was pacing again. Really it was a wonder there was no groove in the floor with how often he did this. But Jeff's absences weren't the reason this time. It was Danny; he had yet to wake up. Dipper faithfully fed him one of the pills every two hours, and though his temperature had returned to normal he still seemed to be suffering. The nightmares were coming more often.

  
At least he was sleeping peacefully at the moment. A small comfort. Watching him as closely as he was, Dipper didn't know Jeff was in the room until he was hefted by his vest, leaving him dangling like the much maligned kitten metaphor. "He's not gonna go downhill the second ya take your eyes off 'im. Chill out for a sec."

  
He sighed and let Jeff cart him to the kitchen to make him eat. "I wish it was that easy. I don't have the kind of experience you do so I don't know what could happen."

  
Jeff paused, nearly dropping the loaf of bread. He hadn't even considered that. With all the magic know how the twins did have he wound up taking for granted what they didn't. He set a thrown together ham sandwich in front of him and urged him to eat. Only when Dipper took the first bite did he start talking.

  
"I'm sorry. I always figure folks got the same level of knowledge I do 'bout this shit. I don't hang around other monsters that often, but I'll tell ya what I can."

  
Dipper jumped straight for his biggest concern. "What's happened to Danny? What did that thing do, or try to do?"

  
Jeff slowly spun an empty mug around, the sticky remains of some Mabel Juice inside. "The Cold Boy's one of the fears of isolation. It pulls folks in and slowly freezes them, heart and mind. I never heard of someone fightin' off the influence before. I don't know 'xactly what's happenin' to Danny, but I think it's like he's got a bug. 'Is body's tryin' to heal I'd say. An' if that's what's goin' on then those pills ain't gonna do much more for 'im."

  
Dipper gripped the sandwich, tempted to throw it at Jeff and just scream. "So what? You want me to just sit around and wait? I'm tired of waiting!"

  
"I know ya are. That's why I'm tellin' ya this. I think Danny got a little lost somewhere along the line. It's happened before; it's how I first met 'em after all."

  
This was new. Dipper took a small bite so he could still talk. "Lost where, the Rift?"

  
Jeff snapped his fingers. "Got it in one kid. But this time you're comin' with me. He'll respond better to your voice than mine anyways."

  
Despite the little food in his mouth he still managed to choke on it. Jeff slid a glass of juice over and waited while he stopped coughing. "I thought you said it was dangerous for humans to be there."

  
"On your own, sure. I can protect ya from the worst of it. Plus I didn't really trust ya at first. Didn't want ya in there until I knew ya were on the level."

  
_'I guess that makes sense.'_ Dipper went quiet, picking at his bread for a second. 

  
Jeff slapped the table. "Soon as ya'll are ready come meet me an' we'll go. But don't eat too fast 'cause I wasn't lyin' about folks gettin' nauseous in there."

  
Dipper stopped, he had been about to shove the entire sandwich in his mouth and run to pack. He forced himself to slow down. Besides, he would be better prepared if he could make a plan first. Jeff let him eat in peace, taking the chance to look their patient over. Danny hadn't moved in the time they were gone, sending a slight edge of worry through him. He wasn't lying when he told Dipper this was new for him. Any human lured in by the Cold Boy was never seen again. Danny wasn't human, though. Was that why he could fight him off, or was it Dipper's intervention that stopped him?

  
Still thinking it over, Jeff picked up the jar of medicine again. He gave it a tentative sniff, tongue flicking it out in a rare use of its scenting ability, parsing the various herbs and potions that went into it. He was immediately  hit by cinnamon, an excellent warming agent, along with a few other spices. He was about to shrug it off when he caught something that set off warning bells. A faint tangy, slightly sweet odor he had only smelled once before. Yggdrasil, no mistake about it, and now that he had it he could pick up more of it than any other herbs.

  
"Well now we know what's been keepin' ya under. Highly concentrated yggdrasil likes this? Shit's stronger than an elephant traquilizer." Knowing this he started sniffing Danny more and came across something alarming. "Satan's asshole, the stuff was so strong it knocked ya clean outta your body!"

  
"Wha~t are you doing?" Dipper had walked in to see Jeff, split tongue fully extended, hovering over Danny. He made a mental note to write the tongue thing down later for his files.

  
"Miss P has a habit of stickin' extra bits in her medicines. I was checkin for anythin' that mighta caused this and, well I hit it. Problem ain't anythin' to do with Fears. The problem is that he got forcefully astral projected!"

  
Dipper felt his stomach sink at that, along with a healthy dose of confusion. How could a ghost do that? Wasn't Danny basically an astral creature already? Or did endigo work differently? It was times like this he wished he had taken better notes. He jerked when a hand touched his shoulder. "Can't do anythin' about it now. Just gotta find where he landed. Ya got everythin' ya need?"

  
He nodded, taking one last look at Danny. Seeing his still form brought back the memories of his fight with Bill; the sight of his broken body on the floor of the fearamid. He cleared his head with a shake and hefted the bag. There wasn't much in it; how does one prepare to travel in an ever shifting dimension? Still, he had packed some recording equipment (provided it worked) and his ever present notebooks.

  
After bidding goodbye to Mabel, and telling her just what was going on with Danny, Jeff lead him out to the backyard and over to his dad's shed. Like a stage magician, Jeff opened the door to show the normal inside; then he closed and opened it again to show a nearly invisible cobble path over a field of blue flowers. Dipper cautiously walked through, jaw dropped.

  
"Welcome to the Rift." Jeff grinned in a way that, even knowing him, Dipper found immensely unsettling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long to get this one out, though I guess you guys are used to that. This chapter is actually pretty long for me.


	44. Confronting the Nightmare

"'Just stay in one place' he said. 'I'll be easier to find ya' he said. Bleh!" Danny spat. The whole staying in place thing was easier said than done; given that the Rift seemed to enjoy moving him around a lot. Almost too much. He hated being played with.

  
Which was exactly what was happening now. Turned out he was right about the Wub-beasts, because not a second after he set foot in the cathedral he was shuttled off like an overdue package. He had then been unceremoniously dumped in what was basically a snake pit, except the pit was also the snake and it was more like a tube filled with tangled balls of the things. He was being balanced on the head of one of the larger ones; bounced up and down like a yo-yo. It was making him a little sick if he was being honest.

  
"Why haven't you tried to eat me already? Yeesh." The snake thing abruptly stopped bouncing him, and began sniffing around him as if seriously considering his suggestion. But it just as quickly went back to bouncing him, opting to toss him back and forth this time. He couldn't do anything but curl up and hope it got bored. Or he got bored and tried something. What he didn't know, but he would do it.

  
"Speaking of things happening; why hasn't this place shunted me along by now? Is it because of you?" The pit snake stopped again, like it was thinking about it. Then, clearly fed up that its toy wasn't going to shut up anytime soon, wrapped him up and opened its jaws.

  
He may have been human again, however temporary, but he wasn't stupid. He had crossed a line and was about to pay for it. The snake began letting out a deep hissing sound as it reared back. Danny wasn't going to become an entree though, so when the snake lunged he hissed right back, not noticing the reappearance of his fangs, and sank his teeth in the snake holding him. The scales were harder than normal, like an insect's shell, and cracked under the force.

  
Danny bit it several more times, finding a deep thrill in smashing its armor. The living pit let out a noise like a deflating balloon and hurled him away. He curled up tightly, trying to protect his head from the impact. But instead of crashing into the walls of the pit, he flew through a hole that opened up briefly.

  
That hole ended up dropping him in a room he was painfully familiar with. It wasn't completely dark this time, however, which only made things worse. Now he could see the small bodies crawling around. It wasn't just centipedes either, but a whole menagerie of creepy crawlies. And the insects weren't alone. He could hear water sloshing around and the rustling of trees. The whole room actually gave him the feeling of being deep in a flooded forest; one that was just waiting to swallow him. The unnerving feeling was only added to by brief glimpses of people, not real ones, just flat shadows that watched him with glowing pinpoint eyes.

  
He backed into the clearest corner he could find and curled up. He shut his eyes and covered his ears, flinching as he felt something brush by. "Jeff this would be the perfect time for you to show up."

  
~*~

  
Dipper screamed and slammed the door behind him. "Giant doll head, okay, that's creepy."

  
He could hear Jeff laugh from down the hall they were in. Though there was no way to tell time here (his watch had stopped), Dipper felt it had been at least an hour or so since they began their search. He had been in awe through most of it. Given all of the things he had seen from Cipher, much of the Rift had seemed tame to him. Up until that head, of course. He could still see its glowing headlight bug eyes in his mind. It was exactly the kind of thing that demon would have "gifted" him.

  
He was really going to need a therapist after this. Or a long cuddle session. Possibly both. After that he lost the nerve to check any other doors, which left him with no real direction to search. Taking the chance to rest, somewhat, he crouched and wiped the sweat from his brow. He wasn't exactly tired, per se, he just needed to stop and collect himself. Down the hall Jeff was traipsing back and forth, the tick-tack of his feet almost hypnotic.

  
The Fear was being more haphazard about his searching, dozens of tendrils throwing open doors all at once, each somehow able to peer in without eyes. Currently, they both were looking for a way out as the hallway wasn't one that could be walked out of normally; it looped on itself endlessly. Most of the doors so far just led to places they already searched. The third time they had opened to what Jeff called the naked rave (he had refused to let Dipper see) he growled. "It's like its tryna keep us away on purpose!"

  
"Why would the Rift do that? Isn't this your domain or whatever?"

  
Jeff shrugged. "Beats me. Never seen it do this before. And I ain't got any more control over it than anyone else; it just likes me a little more'n most."

  
"Well, we need to find him out of here before something tries to snack on his astral form. Think you can tell it that?"

  
"Hmm, I can try. Though most of the time ya just gotta wait for somethin' to be different."

  
Dipper just relaxed after that. Or tried to. Low scale panic had set in a while back, making his skin itch and fingers jump. He gripped the horn and focused on the energy inside, breathing like Jeff had taught him. He listened to Jeff checking more doors. He walked through one, tendrils rustling like branches, before he shouted for him. "Here's our change!"

  
He followed the call out of the hallway and into a field; the hall fading away as he went. He stumbled a little on the sudden grass sprouting under his feet. It was the same field Danny had described to him. But of the so called Wub-beasts there was no sign. Evidence of them was scattered around in the shape of yards deep prints in the ground. Jeff continued calling him. His voice came from the direction the prints went so Dipper continued to observe them as he went. Slowly the tracks converged and began moving together to wherever Jeff was calling him from.

  
The Fear pointed down the cliff he was standing on and Dipper looked down to see a tangle of bodies. "Mass suicide. That only happens when somethin' big is comin'. On the plus side bein' here means we're gettin' close. Danny wound up here the first time so he can't be too many shifts off."

  
Jeff politely declined to mention just how many shifts he had had to go through to find him the first time.

  
~*~

  
Danny jumped when a loud bang went off near him. He could just see a distortion across from where he was sitting, the surface bouncing and cracking violently as something rammed it. It took him a second to realize what was going on; something was trying to break through the wall. A wall that was mere feet from where he was sitting. The darkness of the room had fooled him into thinking it was much larger. Still he took care to distance himself from it. A good decision, it turns out, as moments later Jeff came barreling through the wall at high speeds. Fast enough that he unintentionally went through the wall behind him. Danny's jaw dropped as he saw he was still in the cathedral.

  
The force from Jeff's charge caused the entire room to collapse, walls and roof falling away like a wet cardboard box. With it went the shadows, their eyes blinking out one by one. But the mass of insects remained; sending unpleasant pricks of fear up Danny's spine. Even worse, in the light of an unidentified source he could see just how many there were. Hoard was not enough to describe it; the ground was practically composed of moving chitin. Danny screamed and jumped at the sight, landing safely in a basket of Jeff's tendrils.

  
Seconds after he was put down Dipper tackled him, sending him to the ground again. The shock of seeing him in the Rift left him speechless and unresponsive, even to the millipedes twining up his legs. Only when Jeff gave him a firm slap on the head did he snap out of it. Even then the first thing out of his mouth was, "Dipper? What are you doing in here, are you okay?!"

  
Dipper scoffed at this. "Of course I'm fine. You're the one who's stuck outside you're body somehow."

  
He said it so calmly that he honestly didn't know how to respond. Like Dipper, he was mostly wondering how that was even possible. "Remind me never to take anything recommended by BEN."

  
That got him a chuckle before Dipper proceeded to tell him all the messed up things he saw while looking for him. Occasionally taking a second to swat a bug or two off before Danny could see.

  
Jeff turned around to give the two some space while he found a shortcut out. Though he did keep an ear on the conversation. Apparently Dipper had never actually seen Danny when he was human, which made him rather jealous of Jeff; a fact he found hilarious. He found it equally funny that Dipper was taller than the ghost, despite being the younger one. It only made sense, given that Danny had "died" at just 14, the introduction of ghost DNA causing him to miss that oh so important teenage growth spurt. It was the kind of contrast that delighted him to no end.

  
When he finally decided to interrupt the couple (not really wanting the two to have a full makeout session around him), Danny had mostly calmed down and they were both more than ready to go. But Danny still had a few things he wanted to know.

  
"So I doubt you can tell me how I got here, either time, but could you at least tell me how I'm like this? I even feel human again. It's. . . really weird. Why did it do this instead of all the bizarre junk Dipper got? I keep thinking I'm dreaming; it's so close to my nightmares." Danny rubbed his arms, a chill beginning to creep in. One he hoped meant he was going back to his body.

  
"Don't know for sure, but I bet it just grabbed ya. As for the other thing, well. The Rift has a knack for showin' folks what gets under their skin most. That's prob'ly why ya turn human here. Phantom is who ya are now; ya'll've moved so far away from who ya used to be that bein' human again takes that progress away from ya. Puts ya right back where ya were before. A confused kid who didn't know what he was."

  
Memories of Spectra rose up. He could practically feel her nails dig in his shoulder as she tore at his self-esteem. _'Not a ghost, not a boy. Just a freaky little kid with freaky little powers.'_ He shook his head, eyes clearing; none of which went unnoticed by Jeff. It all left it very clear about the cause of it all, so he cut to the chase with his own query.

  
"How long ya been havin' nightmares like this?"

  
Danny wasn't even surprised at this point. He had long since associated the other's flashes of knowledge with his nature. "Since Weirdmaggedon."

  
"Dipper told me 'bout that. All these things ya see and hear in this place are Fears. EAT, Algernon Forest, the Nightlanders. It's the loss of control, regressin', losin' ya sense of self; as Phantom ya fear bein' put in that place again. Bein' reduced to nothin' but an animal. That's why this is happenin' to ya."

  
"But what about all these bugs? GAH!" He screamed and swatted at a rather large beetle that had climbed his shoulder. Jeff picked it off and popped it in his mouth, crunching it down like candy.

  
"That's just the Intrusion, means a few things but for ya I think's just basically the fear of insects. Nothin' deeper. Ya don't like bugs much do ya?" He smirked, letting a leg hang out of his mouth; much to Dipper's disgust.

  
"No, when I still lived in the woods I woke up to a cockroach trying to climb in my nostril. Kind of scarred me for life. So to speak."

Jeff and Dipper helped him check for any other bugs that may have tried to hitch a ride. Danny was overjoyed to be leaving there, hopefully for good, but he couldn't shake the rising feeling that this was a calm before a storm none of them wanted to experience.

  
~*~

  
Outside the Rift, at home, Mabel sighed. It had been nearly three hours since Jeff and her brother left to bring Danny back. In that time little of Danny's condition improved. But just as she was about to get up and do something about it he began to fade. She panicked at first, thinking he was going for good, then she heard a trio of voices from the backyard. As the talk reached the door he disappeared completely, and she could hear Danny in the conversation.

  
She ran out to greet them, as happy as Dipper was to see Danny awake and back to normal. Not quite back to normal, though, as she noticed the two of them were walking closer together; Danny wrapping his tail around him like an affectionate cat. She collided with all three of them and was almost instantly on Danny's back, demanding every detail and listening in awe.

  
Danny pointedly ignored the gluey feeling in the back of his head. This was going to be the last happy moment for a while. He could tell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whoof this was a long one. I'm kinda surprised at myself.


	45. The Final Door

Dipper and Danny were tucked close together, looking out the window. Neither had been able to get to sleep due to an overwhelming feeling of dread. It crept in from everywhere; a near double of the oppressive darkness in the Rift. As the time drifted on, Dipper lost the fight to exhaustion; the stresses of the Rift finally catching up. Danny was able to stay awake a little longer. Long enough to check on the rest of the house, at least.

  
Outside he saw Jeff on the roof, perching like a bird of prey. Danny could actually see the shingles splitting under the pressure from his feet from where he stood. He drifted up to join him, glad to be able to fly again. Jeff didn't even turn to look at him, eyes focused on horizon. Though Danny couldn't see the things he was, he could certainly sense it well enough to know what had his attention.

  
"It's starting soon, isn't it?" Frost rose on his tail at the thought.

  
Jeff gave an affirmative grunt. "Not sure what's comin' but it's gonna hit hard. Should prob'ly set up some defense of some sort."

  
Without knowing what they were up against, the two of them could do little in the way of defenses. Instead going with a grab bag of tactics; from military to storm prep, they did everything they could. Danny even went so far as to lay a system of nearly invisible threads of ice all over the property; spinning an alarm web like a spectral spider. Jeff put out the call, and soon the house was filled with the Manor's residents.

  
Getting everyone settled in was a bit of a trial, especially since Masky was very determined to take Mabel's closet for some reason, but they got them in position eventually. Shortly after four o' clock Danny returned to Dipper's room, hoping to get a little sleep before the end of the world. He curled up on the end of the bed, ears alert. Just as he had drifted off he heard the closet open and the quiet pad of plush feet; heading towards his end of the bed. He lowered his tail to lift his visitor up and found Ickbar staring at him; button eyes somehow looking frightened.

  
Protective instincts took over and Danny pulled the doll close, feeling it tremble. He curled in tighter, hearing him mumble. "There aren't enough teeth in the world to beat this."

  
He wrapped him in his claws, purring gently to calm him. "Teeth or not, we'll win." He raised his head, gazing out. "We have to."

  
Ickbar tucked in closer and went to sleep. Danny gave the air of the house one last listen; the only sounds were the breathing of its many guests and, faintly, the scrape of a blade being sharpened.

  
**SCP Foundation, Site [REDACTED]**   
**SCP-093 Containment Unit**

  
Amarynthia sat in a far corner. Sat wasn't the word really, as they were in fact clinging to a roof corner. They had been there since four that afternoon; watching the decay of both SCP-093. The smaller stone was already a pool of reddish fluid on its mirror, but the original sample was still holding on; a quarter of it still remaining intact.

  
A bouquet of grasping arms reached out of the smaller mirror, writhing around for purchase. One arm swung back, smashing the original mirror. A gush of tears burst through the cracks, eating away and the stone in record time. It was left a puddle in seconds. Amarynthia trembled in all their tentacles as the scene unfolded before them. As the last of the stone dripped to the floor a single, enormous arm pushing through the mirror. The surface bending like water viewed in slow motion.

  
Then it popped, and Amarynthia cut their losses; running away right then and there. Even after retirement, safe in their home below the waves; they would recall this moment and go cold.

  
As it had when SCP-239 died, the entire complex began suffering power troubles. In the encroaching darkness of the dying lights, the monsters from the mirror began to move. Purposely dragging their bodies to the concentrations of life they could detect. A loud bang announced the yet another escape by SCP-173, using the flickers of darkness to make its own way to battle.

  
Though calling it a battle was unfair. By the time the sun was beginning to rise more than half the Foundation had joined the ranks of the dead, and more joined the undead. Kondraki staged an evacuation for the survivors and ran to the flooded stairs to check on their uninvited guest. EAT had remained in its new location; waiting for the call to arms. But when he arrived at the landing there was no sign of the sentient water, not even a stain on the ground. EAT had retreated as well. _'Not a good sign.'_

  
Once he received confirmation that the facility was empty of all humans and human-allied SCPs ("Yes, we have 999, nasty bugger.") Kondraki headed for the silo to activate the on-site nukes. He only hesitated for a moment, the possibility of unleashing a radioactive 628 looming large in his mind, but compared to what was coming a killer lizard with nuclear powers was a small price to pay. He punched in the code and joined the rest of the facility on the airstrip. The air filled with the sound of chopper blades and the fleet vanished to parts unknown to the world.

  
When the nuke went off it took everything with it. The final dying scream of 628 lingered long after the fires had died. Some say it echoed for years after; they say it sounds like a scream of joy. Of finally finding peace.

  
~*~

  
Despite the chaos that consumed the SCP Foundation, the Under-realm stayed relatively peaceful. The only sign anything strange had happened was the sudden stampede of lesser beasts; the Striders, Rods, and bump-in-the-nights high-tailing it to the nearest Gates and even old Earth Wells, any exits they could find. The denizens may not have all been human, but they weren't stupid. They had all seen the growing agitation in Slenderman and his followers, the frequent appearances by Jeff; even the rising rumbles from the Abyss. This was just the last sign. Within minutes the entire realm was silent. Anyone and everyone who couldn't get out had gone to ground, tucked in with their clans and weapons; ready to take on whatever might try and take them.

  
Only the whistle of air through the Earth Wells broke that silence. Followed soon after by the buzz of streetlights going on as the faux night began.

  
~*~

  
Deep in the Ghost Zone, an army was gathering.

  
Under the orders of Princess Dorathea, the kingdom's messengers had traveled the length and breadth of the Ghost Zone to recruit warriors from all eras to defend the zone's barriers. No one wanted a repeat of the Weirdmaggedon breach, and so they came in droves. Many of Danny's allies, and enemies, counted among the numbers. Walker had arrived with the entire population of his prison to aid the effort. A vast majority of Ancients gathered along the edges of the Zone, watching and waiting for the inevitable tear to happen.

  
At the front line stood the most staunch of Danny's friends and allies; Frostbite with all the Far Frozen, Dorathea and her warriors, and even Nocturne's myriad nightmares and waking terrors paced along the ranks. The master of dreams himself stood beside Clockwork, both prepared to aid their apprentice and, in Nocturne's case, soon to be student. The dream ghost turned to Clockwork. "When all this is said and done I hope you won't begrudge me for stealing your protege now and again. He has potential as a Dreamwalker."

  
"Not in the slightest, Nocturne. He could stand to learn something new."

  
~*~

  
Yet back in reality, the house slept on, blind to the forces mustering at the edges of their awareness. And, crucially, blind to the force that had turned its anger on them. A force that had been waiting long, long years for its chance. To take back everything it deserved; everything that belonged to it.

  
The last of the walls had fallen. Mad, mirthless laughter rang through the void as it pushed it's way free. _'Oh, yes. It's finally time. Nothing's stopping me this time!'_


	46. A Prelude to an End

Stan and Ford burst into the shack, breathless and frantic. Ford's equipment had gone absolutely insane during the night, picking up a massive spike in weirdness back in Gravity Falls. The spike only grew stronger until Ford's screen was nothing but white, and then it overloaded and shut down, acrid smoke pouring from the casing; prompting the brothers to turn around and take the first red-eye flight they could get. Which, when you have a pair of brass knuckles and a laser gun aimed in your direction, was a straight shot to Oregon.

  
Before they could find the source, however, they had to deal with the large man that was currently holding them in a headlock; shouting something about getting the potato gun.

  
"Soos, you big idiot, it's us!" Stan shouted, worming his way out.

  
"Aw, dudes so happy to see you. Things are going crazy bonkers around here. We had to nail all the furniture down to keep it from floating. Did you build another secret portal in the basement or something?"

  
Ford scoffed. "Certainly not, I think we've all had enough portals for a lifetime. But shouldn't Danny be looking into this?"

  
"Danny hasn't been here for months, dudes. Something went down with Dipper and Mable and he's been there ever since. Don't worry about it; it's been pretty calm." A newly purchased booster seat drifted past, giving Soos a solid whack to the head. "If you ignore the gravity being off."

  
With a shared look the twins split up, Stan went down to see if something in the lab was acting up while Ford took the outside to check the unicorn hair barrier. Neither found anything of concern; both lab and barrier were in working order. The only place to really look was the woods, and that was shot down when Melody pointed just how quiet it had been there too.

  
That didn't deter the twins and, after repairing the weirdness sensor, they headed out. They followed the blip of the energy tracker until it lead them to a clearing; one that was painfully familiar to both of them. The ruins of the fearamid still lay about, no one in town brave enough to approach and clear them away. But the feeling of something missing was unshakeable, and that feeling was enough for both grunkles to begin frantically trying to call Dipper and Mable. Yet just as it began ringing something grabbed the phone from him, smashing it on the ground.

  
Laughter pressed down on them. "No spoiling the surprise, you two."

  
Something grabbed them both and everything went dark.

  
~*~

  
They knew it had begun the second they woke. Dreadful red light burned through the windows, as though the world outside was bathed in flame. It seared their eyes as they stepped outside. But only for a moment. When their vision recovered they were surprised to see the light was no more harsh than that of the Under-realm. The sun could still be seen as a hazy orange disk in the sky. If there was ever a setting for the end of the world this was it.

  
The battle began in earnest, with the plucking of Danny's threads and an exuberant yell from Toby. Quickly followed by the smashing of an unfortunate window; a victim of the proxy's eagerness to fight. The twins jumped on Danny's back, Jeff following as he leapt to the roof.

Shambling over the grass was a horde of the old horror standby- "Zombies?! Are you serious?" Dipper exclaimed.

  
"Hollowed, looks like. Failed attempts at makin' proxies. Can't feel pain, don't rot. They're more like voodoo zombies if ya wanna get technical. Slender usually kills 'em off though. Just shows ya how fucked this all is."

  
Danny snarled, drool spilling from his jaws. "They're still a kind of dead, and I always wanted to taste zombie."

  
With that he leapt into the fray, teeth gnashing left and right. Dipper and Mabel dropped through the roof hatch to gear up, scoping out the house to make sure nothing had gotten in. Once equipped they returned, took up position and started picking off the Hollowed with a combination of crossbow bolts and Mabel's own version of greek fire (made of unicorn hoof shavings and gnome vomit, among other things; ethically collected of course). The sparkling flames surged over the grass, leaving the lawn untouched even as it crawled in an ever-shifting spectrum of color over the invaders.

  
Jeff went for higher ground, hopping on the chimney to see the damage. If it weren't for the red sky and the horde behind him a person could mistake it for a quiet morning. The streets were empty, and not a soul could be heard. Speaking of silence; he faintly noted the noise dying down below, the Hollowed obviously having been killed or driven away for now. This was followed by the smell of blood behind him as Danny returned to the roof. Three sets of footsteps joined him and he glanced over to see the twins and the endigo staring out over the landscape. It was empty.

  
Almost.

  
But Jeff could see them in the distance, massive shapes moving through the haze. He could also tell the skyline had changed drastically; only faint flickers of the old horizon could be seen. Like a hologram, a new reality had been laid over their own. Jeff recognized it immediately. "It's the city of 093."

  
Even if none of them had read the file there was no mistaking what was in front of them. The stones were gone, and now that world had leaked into their own with violent speed. Danny gave a sigh. "Why can't other dimensions just keep to themselves anymore?"

  
Whether it had been sarcasm or not no one had an answer for him. In the brief window of peace the four descended back into the house to plan. It was quickly decided that they would split into two groups; Jeff, the twins, and Danny would scope out the situation in the city while the others would remain behind to keep anything from getting in the house. Mabel briefed the home team on the house's magickal defenses, as well as the not so magic. She walked them through every booby-trap in the place and didn't leave until the all knew how to use them. Even Mister Widemouth and Ickbar were given a crash course before being put in charge of the more finicky devices; their small hands being excellent for operating them.

  
With the house in good hands Mabel packed up her kit (rainbow greek fire, various throwable charms, combat glitter, and her trusty grappling hook) and joined her brother outside. He was busy packing up with the rest of their equipment, which mostly consisted of different potions loaded into special glass bombs and plenty of ritual chalk. Danny carried the lot of it in a set of modified saddlebags. Jeff didn't have anything in particular, but he did take care to pack a couple of whetstones just in case.

  
As the twins mounted up a loud whistling came towards them, followed by Jeff's hand grabbing a whirling hatchet, stopping it just inches from Danny's ear. Jeff growled and whirled around, ready to fight, only to see Toby waving cheerily as he walked towards them. The smile vanished by the time he reached them however. His goggles flashed eerily in the light as he pulled them on, mouth scarf following soon after.

  
"T-there's no way you're lea-leaving me behind, thi-is time. I want to h-help." Toby stood tall, shoulders firm as he stared Jeff straight in the good eye. With an impressed whistle Jeff gave an honest smile and welcomed him. He boosted the proxy onto Danny's back. With a brief warning from Dipper to hang on tight they were off.


	47. The City of "Purity"

Traveling into the city was easy. Danny cleared the distance in mere minutes; Jeff springing along beside him. The Fear was enjoying the chance to really work his legs, something he didn't get to do often, what with humanity's love of crowded cities leaving very little in the way of large open spaces for jumping. Toby was enjoying himself just as much, holding on to Dipper's waist as Danny loped forwards, wings out for the occasional short glide. Yet no matter how close they got, the strange giant torsos always seemed to be in the distance.

  
Danny came to a halt at the very edge of the city, his eyes locked on something on the ground. Everyone's gaze tracked his to a blurry reddish line where the road changed significantly. On their side it was neat, dark black from a recent coat of asphalt. While on the other side of the line the road had not seen any sort of maintenance for many years; it was dirty and pot holed and covered in worrying piles of dried green-brown slop. Even the sky was different; the burning red of their world gave way to dirty brown, as though the sky itself was rusting away. Yet the buildings, even with their broken windows and chipped facades, looked pristine.

  
Jeff was the first to cross the line, tongue testing the air. He hacked and backed out, coughing hard. "Now I know why they always wore all that shit durin' testin'. The air tastes like ass in there!"

  
Danny slipped his tail into one of the saddlebags, bringing out four sets of respirator masks. When Toby expressed concern for him he dismissed it easily. "I'm a ghost, Toby. We generally aren't big on the whole "breathing" thing."

  
Once all the masks were fitted and checked Jeff headed in again, with Danny close behind; ears strained to their fullest. Toby ducked down, taking the twins with him to lower their profile. Danny had more reason than just bad air to give them the masks, he smelled ectoplasm in the air. And in the last year research had discovered that mixing pure ectoplasm with the pollutants in the living world created a dangerous, invisible vapor. Prolonged exposure to it led to a sort of radiation poisoning; recklessness and creeping dementia being the prime symptoms.

  
It was what had ultimately claimed his parents' minds. Though they had carried the effects for far longer.

  
Even if they couldn't see through the windows, they all knew what lurked in those buildings; they caught the faint glimpses of the smaller creatures darting around inside. Toby dismounted and began peeking through the windows of the skyscrapers as they passed, but as expected there was no one around. No one human, anyways.

  
"Just like when the Cold Boy came." Danny muttered. A shudder went through both him and Dipper, the event still painfully fresh in their minds.

  
"Not surprisin'." Jeff said, kicking at one of the dried piles. His foot put a hole that sent fine cracks through it. "Layerin' dimensions like this is a science, ya don't do it right and shit gets lost in translation. That's why it's pretty damn impressive that Cipher guy did it so well."

  
"S-so does that mea-ean there's no one here b-but us? I don't th-think I like that." But they were wrong about the town being empty. A fact they learned not long after setting foot on the main street. The sound of many feet moving in one direction (towards them, unfortunately) had Danny raising his wings to shield the twins; who had wisely chosen to remain seated. He whipped his tail around Toby and held him tight, just in cause the newcomers had bad intentions.

  
Mabel peeked around Danny's wing and pointed at the group rounding the corner. "Look! Some humans did make it in!"

  
It was true, the approaching footsteps were those of survivors. A small group of ten or so appeared in the distance and began rushing towards them. At the same time one of the torso creatures rounded the corner and saw all of them. Moving faster than its size suggested it quickly overtook the small crowd. As it towered over them thick brownish oozed bubbled up from the skin of its face, tension holding it briefly before it fell in a thick rain. It hit the crowd like molasses and swiftly spilled towards them.

  
The encroaching flood of brown-green slop sent Danny scrambling up the nearest building, Jeff leading the way and Toby holding tight to the twins to hide the fate of the people caught in it. Thanks to Toby's bizarre relationship with death, his presence kept the creature from sensing Dipper and Mable. With nothing else around it ambled on, it's direction sending sudden concern through Mable.

  
"What if they go towards the house?!" She cried, readying her grappling hook to try and get the thing's attention.

  
Dipper easily brought it back down. "I don't think they can. Seems like they're stuck behind that barrier."

  
"For now." Jeff pointed out the city's border, which had certainly expanded since they entered. "Looks like we're on the clock, folks."

  
Danny continued climbing to the very top of the skyscraper, where the air was somehow cleaner. He flicked his tail in a complex pattern that prompted a sigh of relief from Dipper. In a hushed tone he spoke, "The air's okay here. We can take the masks off but keep your voices down just in case."

  
Mable gave her own relieved sounds as she climbed off and shook her legs, which had started going numb from how tight she was gripping, getting the blood moving again. Jeff crouched down and was joined by the others, Danny curling around them all. During their brief rest Jeff took the time to inform them of the nature of this beast. The Unclean, as far as he could tell, were some sort of side effect from the so-called Holy Tears. The tears themselves were believed to be a gift from an angel to cleanse sinners of their impure urges.

  
"So what happened? To the people I mean." Mabel asked, wedging herself against Toby. The proxy pressed back, equally disturbed by all this.

  
"Same thing that always happens with this shit. Government gets a nasty result, hides it 'til it blows up in their faces, then tries to stop gap the shit outta it. Ya'll can see how well that worked."

  
An Unclean trundled past as if to punctuate his statement. When it passed with no sign of turning around the small group returned to the streets to investigate what was left, and loot anything that might be useful. The tears had already dissolved, or evaporated (whatever they did), and in their wake was the survivor's clothing, utterly pristine.

  
Luckily for them, these particular survivors were well-versed in weirdness, and had put together kits as well. Most of what was there were basics that Mabel and Dipper used to bolster their own stock, but, underneath a camo vest was an odd looking weapon. It looked like an average kitchen knife, albeit one designed to be used by some sort of fellow with geometry for a face. The surface was covered in scrolling, beautifully intertwined runes and unknown symbols. Most tellingly, there was blood on it; blood and Tears. Yet it showed no sign of damage. It occurred to them all that the Unclean who had done the victims in. . . had been limping.

  
Jeff took the knife, wiping it clean. _'So this is what the Boogeymen meant by a better knife. Damn, now I'm actually impressed by 'em.'_

  
His thoughts were interrupted by Toby's shout for attention. "J-jeff, you're going t-to want to see thi-is!"

  
Jeff tucked the knife away and leaned over Toby's head. The object of concern was an old man, half-rotted and covered in sickening boils. His legs were dissolved by a puddle of tears. Jeff recognized him immediately. It was the Dying Man; now dead himself, ironically. He had at least been right about the Fears using another dimension to travel, but this. . .

  
This was the worst outcome; it threw all his other theories in the dirt. He started cussing a storm, kicking deep trenches and busting masonry as he released his anger. "This tears it! It ain't the Fears at all! Why didn't I figure it out?! They don't know 'bout SCPs; I make sure of it. These fucks are usin' 093 and its monsters to clear everythin' out. This ain't an apocalypse. It's a cleansin'!"

  
"Got it one, Sourire Ange!"

  
The voice, echoing and just a little nasally, nonetheless sent a deep chill through them all.


	48. An Unwelcome Return

"Bill Cipher." Dipper and Mabel whispered. Danny raised his wings, a low snarl rising in his chest.

  
"Exactly! Didja miss me, Pine tree? Admit it you missed me!" The triangle demon floated down and poked Dipper's cheek, jerking back from icy fangs as Danny snapped at him. The click of jaws on empty air snapped him out of his stunned fugue.

  
"No, no, it can't be. How?! You're dead, a statue. Stan even destroyed your astral body!"

  
Bill wagged a taunting finger. "Tsk tsk, Pine tree. He didn't get all of me. I don't want to give everything away, but I managed to tuck a bit of myself in little pocket dimension. And now, thanks to a little friend I'm here. Why am I telling you all this? Simple, I want you to know just how _badly you failed!"_

  
He cackled, color flickering in glee. Bill threw one last spark on the fire before vanishing. "They say legends never die, and thanks to my stunt three years ago I'm the biggest legend there is!"

  
With that, and a blinding flash, the demon vanished. Dipper jumped down and started pacing. He made no sound except panicking mumbles. Over the mumbling came another noise; a low grinding and bubbling. Danny took charge in an instant, grabbing Dipper by the collar and throwing him to Toby before taking to his heels. The Unclean came into view and saw them, following with a low bellow that shook the ground, nearly sending them tumbling. Jeff skipped ahead, teleporting to a building with mostly boarded windows. He smashed one and jumped through.

  
Danny was about to make his own leap when a bristling forest of tendrils emerged from the building and yanked them all through. The rustling surrounded them as they were pulled up through the broken ceiling and past several floors until Jeff finally released them in what appeared to be an office block. If the place had had cubicles they had long since broken or been stolen; though why looters would take the walls and not the innumerable terminals for the precious metals was beyond him.

  
He shook off the tendrils as they were still wrapped around him, to his annoyance. The reason for the stillness became clear when he looked up and found Jeff, Toby at his side just in case, staring at the computer like it would come to life any second. "Ar-are you okay? What i-is it?"

  
"I remember this, from the reports 'bout 093. Least that's what I think I read. This is the same office from the Violet and Yellow reports, sure as shit. But there's only one way to know for sure." Jeff brushed an invisible layer of dust from the nearest desk.

  
"And how's that? By ransacking every floor for proof? Because I like that idea way better than dealing with those Unclean thingies." Mabel said, shying away from a CPU tower that was leaking something. She wasn't going to risk it being more Tears. She was going to risk a possible alarm going off to investigate, however. In her own fashion of course. She started hitting the power button on any computer that looked like it might work. And hit pay dirt on her fourth try, the computer whirring to life with only the faintest of complaints.

  
At the sound Jeff seemed to come back to the present, pulling his tendrils back until they were just peeking out of his hoodie. It was slow as molasses, but eventually the start-up screen appeared, FAITHFUL OS glowing golden from a gentle gray background. Jeff grinned. "It's a good start, every computer in this place, an' prob'ly all tech in this city, runs off this system. Just need one more thing. Any of ya find a workin' elevator?"

  
Toby, who had broken away once Jeff snapped out of his state and gone searching himself, whistled from the far northeast corner of the room. He got a rough pat on the back and some ruffled hair as a reward. After prodding around the controls, Jeff got it working. "If this is the same buildin' then it should be on the 74th floor. So get comfy ya'll."

  
Since he was too big to fit in the car, Danny followed below from the shaft.

  
~*~

  
It turned out Jeff had been right on target. Not only had they taken shelter in the very same building from the Foundation's reports, but this particular building was one of the city's three main cleansing centers. Each center named for one of the Holy Trinity. Mabel had found, along with that information from mucking around on the computers, a plaque on the wall just outside the elevator. It proudly announced they were in the healing chamber of the Center of The Son.

  
The first door they tried brought them to a long room lined with tubes, each about seven feet tall, and filled to the brim with the Holy Tears. Almost half of the tubes were occupied. Dipper grimaced and put a hand on one of the tubes, wiping away a thick layer of dust. Its occupant was a young woman, persevered for eternity in whatever made up the tears.

  
Even sealed up the stench of the tears was overpowering to all of them. Danny gagged and backed out of the room, trembling all over. Concerned with the sudden reaction Dipper almost asked after him, only for the ghost to vomit heavily and collapse on his side; gasping for air. Dipper ran to him, Mabel close behind with a sachet of herbs already out of her pocket in case of a toxic reaction. Dipper gently rubbed his side, calming him. He could feel his organs heaving in protest through his thin scales.

  
He gave another gasp, coughing, and manged to speak. "That gunk, the tears or whatever. It's rotting them. Rotting their souls. It's disgusting."

  
Just those few words was enough to make him heave again; his greenish blood in the mix this time. Mabel leaped into action at the sight, pulling her mask out and packing it with the detoxifying herbs. She carefully tied it to his face with a length of yarn as the strap wasn't long enough. The combination of the plants and the filter quickly helped him to calm down, stomach settling and breath coming easier. She and Dipper got him to his feet and headed for the elevator, the boy eyeing the tubes the entire time.

  
"I bet this is why Bill took this dimension." He said while they waited for the car to come back down. "He wants to use the Holy Tears to convert any humans left into his followers. Belief is power; especially for a dream demon, and Bill needs a lot of it."

  
Jeff walked the length of the hall. He kept his eyes off the people in the tubes, instead looking over the walls for a control panel of some sort; anything to shut this place down. Now he turrned back. "Then why let the Unclean go 'round meltin' 'em? Seems pretty counterproductive to me."

  
"Intimidation. Let them take out the resistance then bully any survivors into pledging their loyalty." He had seen Bill do it before. Even experienced the demon's browbeating himself. Once he started playing his games it was nearly impossible not to give in. Not without being immune like Danny was. The elevator announced itself with a cheery ding, letting the twins help Danny wobble onboard. Mabel pulled his tail through the doors and they were gone, leaving Jeff and Toby to find some way of dealing with the bodies.

  
"And there's already so m-many. Cowards." Toby gripped his hatchet, more than ready to bash as many of the glass coffins open as needed.

  
"Don't go gettin' pissed at 'em yet, Tobes. A lot of these folks were in here before. I remember the names from the file. Ain't gonna get any use out of 'em though." He smashed the nearest tube and let its contents spill to the floor. The body inside practically collapsed on itself from the change in pressure. "These poor fucks're long dead, they were in the report an' those tests were years old when I saw 'em."

  
Unable to find any obvious way to shut things down Jeff and Toby left to regroup, the latter breaking open a few more of the cleansing tanks out of spite and a sudden need to break something. The elevator ride was quiet, Jeff lost in thought about just how to stop this conversion from happening. With the hiss and characteristic lurch that even advanced technology would never fix the car slowed and let them off. Toby stumbled off, grabbing Jeff's arm to steady himself; the lights on the office floor had been shut off.

  
A low rumbling was enough to answer why. One of the larger Unclean was trundling past the window, its massive face level with the floor. In the dim light of the permanent sunset Jeff could see the twins tucked in a far corner where the light wasn't reaching; Danny behind them, still breathing heavily but managing to cover them with a wing. Jeff skirted the walls, keeping Toby close and doing his best to stay in the shadows until they made it to the others.

  
As soon as they rejoined Dipper gave them the details. "That thing's been going back and forth since we got up here. We aren't sure what attracted it, but I think it definitely knows we're here."

  
Jeff cussed. "The lights prob'ly drew 'em in. So good news is anyone in this place, and I'm bettin' the others, are long dead. So Bill ain't gettin' nothin' from 'em. Bad news, he might be controllin' these things. They're basically blind so's long as we move quietly we can get around."

  
Danny gave a phlegmy cough, chest spasming hard as he brought up something they would rather not see. "But if the lights are drawing them then we need to fix that. Taking out the power in this place would stop them from finding us here. Only problem with that is we wouldn't be able to leave."

  
He took off the mask as the smell hadn't followed them up the shaft. He handed it to Mabel who, after making a face at whatever his cough had left, shook it out and proceeded to check him over. Dipper petted him gently while he thought out a plan of attack. Going after Bill this early was ill-advised, and head on strikes were useless (he was reminded of trying to punch Bill in the eye, brave but stupid). And if he was somehow ordering the Unclean to find them then. . .

  
"We need to take out the city's power. Jeff, did any of the reports mention a power plant? If we shut down the grid then the Unclean won't be able to see us out or inside. After that we just need to figure out where Bill is setting up his lair. Given how he likes bizarre, flashy junk it shouldn't be too hard to find."

  
While Danny continued recovering from the fumes, Dipper went with Jeff to find a back way out of the building. They did find a service entrance, and nearby was an emergency generator. Jeff gave it a good beating for safety. Dipper found the entrance was locked, but a bit of juggling with a lockpicking kit (a gift from Grunkle Stan last Christmas) got it open with minimal noise.

  
Jeff stayed outside to keep watch while Dipper went and got the rest of the team. 


	49. Into the Storm

On the way out Danny picked up an electrical signal that lead them to the center's power room. There was no sign of where the power was coming in from, but that didn't stop them from wrecking it. Taking out the power for the whole building, security be damned. Without the energy the lights gave off the Unclean had no way to see. And with the unnatural presence of Toby throwing off their sense anyway the Unclean scoping the place ambled off. To them it was like nothing was there.

  
Knowing that put considerable stress on the group to stay out of the light. Danny's planar shifting and invisibility got them pretty far in this regard as even the brightest light couldn't illuminate something that wasn't technically there. But Danny was still tired from whatever sickness the smell of the tears caused, and he couldn't keep the trick up forever. When it eventually failed they were a third of the way across the city; at the Center of the Father.

  
None of them really wanted to go in and risk subjecting the endigo to a second round of what they figured were, to him, toxic fumes. But they needed to plot a course; wandering wasn't doing them any favors. Any potential argument was stalled by the sudden flickering of the streetlights, sending them scurrying inside. An Unclean thundered by moments later. Dipper sighed as it passed without incident. _'My heart can't take much more of those things.'_

  
The Center of the Father appeared to be, somewhat logically, the primary cleansing center. Given that it was the largest of the three they could only imagine just how many corpses were left behind here. Though the lights were out here it was still bright enough to show them a lavish welcome hall and, most importantly, a map of the city proudly displayed over the check-in desk. Dipper was on it in an instant, sketching madly to take every detail in; both in paper and in memory. Mabel took Toby to raid any emergency supplies while Jeff and Danny kept to the perimeters.

  
With a solid map in hand, Dipper started going over it. There were a few buildings that the map had never named; these were his choices for a possible power plant. The only thing he couldn't figure out was just what they used to create power. Was it a standard set up, maybe nuclear? Knowing what it was would make it easier to deal with. Although, going with what he had already seen he wouldn't have been surprised if it was more tears somehow. Jeff gave what advice he could, but none of the reports ever covered anything beyond the Unclean or records. No one had gone further into the city to learn more.

  
Either that or the Foundation just shut the whole thing down. That seemed more likely from what he had seen.

  
A low rumbling drew Danny's attention outside; wary of a possible attack. What he saw was a thunderhead moving their way. It struck him as odd, however. No matter their powers, all ghosts have some level of sensitivity to electricity, an attraction; storms to them were like a laser dot to a cat. Yet this storm didn't seem real at all. Not a spark could be felt, even when Danny phased through the window to double check. "Hey Jeff, is this place prone to storms?"

  
"Um, 'bout as much as any other city I guess. Reports never said anythin'. Why?"

  
"Because it looks like a big one is coming this way."

  
Whatever Jeff had been about to say was interrupted by a loud cry from overhead. A sound that could be avian in the same way an octopus could be called a harp. It was soon followed by the boom of thunder and a sudden wash of rain passing by. Dipper peeked outside just in time to see lightning strike a lamp post across the street. He reeled back, eyes burning, and fell against Danny's side. The ghost's whole body vibrating from his growls. Both at the creature and in concern for his safety.

  
"Thunderbird." He mumbled, trying to stop his eyes from watering. Though calling it a bird was generous.

  
As soon as the flash cleared Mabel pressed her cheek to a window to try and follow the bird-thing. A task made easier by the fact that the window wasn't there anymore; having melted from the lightning's heat. She watched it fly over the remainder of the city to perch on a tall metal tower. Even from a distance she could see the arcs of electricity racing down the tower from its claws. "That's what's powering the city!?"

  
Jeff heaved a sigh, nothing was easy these days. But when had it ever been for him? "That's gonna be a helluva lot harder to break than a grid. Dammit."

  
The Thunderbird's fly over had temporarily brought power back to the block, lighting it up like a flare. It wasn't long before the Unclean began moving in; their huge hands kicking up dust as they felt around. Until the lights went out again they were effectively trapped. Jeff got everyone moving to the lower floors; hauling Dipper under his arm as the boy refused to open his eyes. Not a good sign.

  
As soon as they were out of danger Jeff had the first aid out of the saddle bags and was at his side. Danny kept him propped up and still while the Fear probed around his face. It was a struggle, as Dipper refused to let him near his eyes. He just kept rubbing them. Which caused thin trickles of reddish tears to leak out. Eventually fed up with it, and more than a little worried by the blood, Jeff grabbed his hands roughly, growling. "Ya can either let me look or risk your eyes rottin' out like Eyeless Jack's. Now show me!"

  
The ploy worked. The statement not only distracting the inquisitive kid enough for Jeff to let go, but also keeping him distracted with questions. "Is that really what happened?"

  
Shining a penlight in Dipper's eyes he noticed a lack of response in the pupil, worrying. "Naw. Did used to be human though. An' I ain't proud to admit it's my fault he ain't anymore. We don't got time for long backstories though. Maybe another time. Aw, shit."

  
It had been no trick of the light. There was blood on his eyes, pooling in the corners before his tears washed it out. Courtesy of burst vessels on the surface. The left had less bleeding but it was still bad. And nothing they could fix at the time. Without any means to repair the damage, Jeff could only keep his eyes from getting worse. He wrapped bandages over his eyes, using the darker colored ones Mabel brought to keep the light out.

  
But it couldn't change the truth.

  
Dipper's eyes were compromised, the flash had burned his retinas and caused several vessels to burst. For the time being, he was blind. Considering what he had seen he probably would be for a long time. On the bright side (figuratively speaking) he would still heal, as the damage hadn't gone too deep. He just needed a little help getting around for now.

  
Just like clockwork, Danny came to the rescue with a peculiar idea. With Mabel's help he made a stiff lead and tied it to Dipper's wrist, using it like a bull-rider's grip to help him stay on his back or stay close. Until his eyes healed he would be his seeing eye dog. Dipper smiled and patted the ghost's side, which was actually his butt; not that Danny minded too much. Without Dipper to read the map, Danny and Mabel took the reigns; being the ones who understood his thought process best. Dipper walked them through it.

  
"The circled places are what I thought were power plants, but it's pretty obvious now that that Thunderbird is the main power source. Though it's power might still be filtered through the plants to spread it further."

  
"S-so we destroy the-the plants, then?" Toby muttered, hand squeezing a hatchet arrhythmically. Jeff pulled his hand away to stop him from grabbing the blade by accident.

  
He had his own idea about the first step anyway. "I think we oughta kill the bird first. Without it the plants won't have nothin' to draw from. An' if they keep going then we wreck 'em anyways."

  
From his back, Danny felt a familiar touch, a series of taps and pats, morse code. **'GET DOWN.'** He dropped to his belly, dragging everyone down with his wings and tail. Toby gave a choked yelp from the sudden contact, causing Jeff to slap a hand over his mouth. They all turned to watch Danny. Glowing eyes pointed them to the stairwell they came down. A small Unclean (relatively speaking, it was still the size of a pony) had gotten in and was roaming the floor, pacing in front of the door. Now and again its head swept over the stairs, trying to pick up on them.

  
Dipper tapped out a new plan from his place and Danny relayed it nearly silently. "Only way out is through that thing. Jeff, pull it down here. We can use this as a chance to look them over; check for a weakness."

  
Jeff already knew a possible weakness. "That one Unclean. I'm pretty sure this hacked it's arm off."

  
He showed Danny the knife and let him inspect it. He traced a finger carefully over the runes, watching them fizz to life against his claws. He grinned, wide and with every one of his teeth. His flicked his gaze to the Unclean and back at Jeff.

  
"Go for it."

  
The next few seconds were like sped up video. A single tentacle spilled from Jeff's back, surging towards the Unclean like a hungry barracuda. It snapped around its head and face, squeezing it like a toy and prompting a surge of Tears to leak down the limb. Jeff pulled it back just as fast, whipping out the knife and putting it straight through the Unclean from head to hip. It hit the floor in two places with a dull slap before crumbling like a deflated balloon. Everyone except Danny was staring in awe. Jeff wiped the mess off on his hoodie. He grinned.


	50. To Kill a Thunderbird

The trek to the Thunderbird was made easier by Jeff's new knife, as it made a laughingstock of the smaller Unclean. Even those that could have stomped them flat were cut down in moments; the blade absorbing the remnants like a sponge. It was a fascinating weapon, and one Dipper fully intended to study at the end of all this. With Ford's help of course.

  
Things got troublesome as they neared the beast's perch, however. Electricity crackled through the air and the powerful stink of ozone forced them to don the filter masks again; Danny ceasing to breathe entirely. The base of the tower, which was actually a giant steel pylon, was swarming with Unclean. Drawn in by the light of the Thunderbird. Here at the base there were no more shadows to hide in, and Danny's powers would likely draw more attention than anything else.

  
Still they managed to get passed as the Unclean were too focused on the Thunderbird's light to even feel them passing.

  
Away from the Thunderbird it was clear that the city had originally been nuclear powered. The enormous, neatly lined stacks had mostly crumbled away; likely trampled by Unclean. It didn't matter though, the plant had obviously been abandoned for far longer than the city had been declining. There was a lingering tingle of radioactivity that had Danny on edge. Mabel and Toby described it all to Dipper. "I doubted that bird was always powering this place. Even if the city rebuilt after the meltdown. It's more than likely Cipher brought it here for his own needs. To keep the cleansing centers running."

  
Mabel pulled out a potion, holding it like a grenade. "So Jeff's right. Step one to fighting Bill is taking out that bird. It's so pretty though."

  
Dipper patted her shoulder. "We can try and get some feathers off it for you. I bet they'd look great on that hat you're working on."

  
She perked up immediately. "Yeah! Let's get that bird!"

  
A loud crash interrupted them as Jeff found a door to the main plant and kicked it in; the crash having come from him shaking the door off his foot. He waved cheekily before going in to snoop around. Just to see, Toby flicked the light switch. The lights buzzed to life, as expected.

  
"So the bird's powerin' this place too. Think it's intentional?"

  
Dipper shrugged but Danny shook his head. "Thunderbirds don't have much of a grip on their powers, no matter what legends say. They are smart enough to take orders though, so it's probably just pumping electricity out without bothering with details. At least that's a point in our favor. Most doors in these places have some sort of powered lock."

  
Jeff snorted. "Don't need power to smash a door, y'know."

  
"But you do need it to keep a door shut. Maybe to keep out roving people-melting monsters?" Mabel argued, shifting her hands like tilting scale. Jeff raised a finger then shrugged. He could reign in his destruction in favor of other's safety.

  
So they went, opening doors with a little guesswork, and the lucky discovery of a high clearance keycard. Toby lagged behind to make sure the doors closed securely to keep anything out. Only once did they encounter anything, and it wasn't even alive. The mummified corpse of an Unclean was melded into a wall halfway up one of the stairwells. Jeff was half-tempted to moo at it, but BEN would have been the only one to get it.

  
As they filed out to the roof the wind of the bird's storm hit them, blowing them to the ground and keeping them there. Down below they could just barely hear the Unclean over the screaming gale. Danny tangled his tail around the twins, Toby having taken cover on his opposite side. Jeff jammed his feet in the gravelly roof and held his ground. If the Thunderbird knew they were there it gave no sign of it; focused entirely on producing electricity.

  
Another gust swept over the roof, lifting Danny up a full inch. Much to his surprise. He grabbed the roof and pulled himself down; bringing his wings down this time to provide further cover. Dipper grabbed his hat as a stray flurry threatened to snatch it away.

  
"We're not going to be able to do anything with all this wind!" He yelled, voice barely loud enough. "Danny can you do something about it!?"

  
Danny nudged him, sharing a silent concern. Pushing the storm back to any degree would likely draw the Thunderbird's ire. Not to mention the power used would light them up like fireworks to any and all Unclean. Dipper tapped out his reply and Danny sighed. Unless they clear the sky then the plan was stalled and they were done for. Just as he had been taught, Danny gathered his energy and pressed it tight. Then his eyes flashed and with a roar Danny pressed back against the storm walls. Slowly but surely creating his own winds to fight it; an eye quickly formed to clear the battlefield.

  
He pressed just a little harder and trapped the winds in place. The wind was fragile, though, and could only keep back the Thunderbird's storm for a little while. King though he was, he was a human born spirit. His power was nothing compared to an Elemental. Still it would serve as a passable shield for their purposes.

  
Just as Dipper had feared, the explosion of power drew the attention of the Unclean like moths to a flame. They began to pile around the plant, groping their way up each other without care for who got crushed. With a liquid hiss a shot of white light caught the massive hand of one as it reached over the lip. The flash frozen limb was blown to flakes by the wind. Two more suffered the same fate without stalling them in the slightest.

  
A smaller Unclean had scrambled across the roof. It nearly reached them before Mabel's grappling hook punched through its fragile head. She dropped the rope from it and loaded another, not wanting to put any of that gunk near her. Dipper was silent and still, listening. A low moan reached him and he grabbed a potion bomb; hucking it over their heads and lighting a mass of flesh up. It hit the ground mere inches from Toby's foot. He lifted his goggles to get a better look and audibly gagged.

  
"Don't puke, Toby. What is it?" Dipper asked.

  
Reluctantly, the proxy leaned closer. "It l-looks like, um, some ki-kind of flying eye."

  
"Eyebat. Looks like Bill's managed to punch a hole to the nightmare dimension again."

  
Mabel flopped backwards, groaning loudly. "Ugh. Those guys were freaky enough the first time."

  
Danny was being forced to back up as the numbers of grasping hands grew. The roof was getting a little too crowded for his taste. "We aren't getting anywhere like this. If anyone has an idea I'm open to it."

  
_'Time for me to shine.'_ Jeff thought. He grabbed some of Mabel's rainbow fire. Mabel, seemingly reading Jeff's mind, gave him the bag with the rest. "Whatever ya got planned for roastin' this turkey ya better do it. Toby, stick close, you're comin' with me."

  
No more words were spoken. Jeff simply took a running leap down to the pack of Unclean, Toby close behind. The two of them leapt across the hordes' back, slicing and hacking wherever they could to draw attention to themselves. And did it ever work. The pack turned as one to chase the interloper they could sense; never noticing Toby as he flitted through them, leaving myriad wounds that bled freely with Tears. Jeff kept him out of them though.

  
~*~

  
The bombs worked like a charm, the rainbow flames keeping the pack corralled and letting Jeff and Toby herd them away from the main building. Toby even got to get in touch with his inner pyromaniac while using them. As he got more than a little manic at the sight of the Unclean burning up.

  
That isn't to say Jeff wasn't enjoying himself as well. Far from it, in fact. He ricocheted off buildings and lampposts; hacking off limbs and heads left and right. He wasn't as quiet as Toby with his mania either, laughing like an utter madman as he went. He also found himself falling into a certain harmony with the proxy; like the pattern of an elegant dance.

  
When the proxy hopped to him, he hurled him back out towards the nearest Unclean. Toby fell, Jeff lifted. Again and again they sliced and spun in intricate designs of death. At some point it became an actual dance. The two gripping tightly to each other, blades out as they whirled. The finale of the performance came in fireworks. Jeff launched himself upwards with Toby in tow. From above they bombarded the pack with the remainder of the potions and landed in an explosion of rainbow fire.

  
Toby couldn't help the laugh that bubbled out of him. "That w-was the d-dumbest, coolest, an-and sparkliest thing I've e-e-ever done. Loved it!" He wheezed. His whole body twitching and jerking from over-stimulation.

  
But they weren't finished yet. With a whale-like bellow, one last Unclean pulled free from the carnage. The largest of all and possibly even the original. Jeff felt sorry for it for a moment. The Foundation had long theorized that the Unclean were once human. Poor bastards taken in by the lies of a government who were themselves manipulated by false promises. As these thoughts scattered in his mind he felt his gut turn over and a long-forgotten pain rise in his head. _'Has it really built up that much? This oughta be fun!_

  
He let it simmer a little longer, trying to calculate just how far it would reach. "Toby get the fuck outta here and back in the plant. An' don't come out 'til I come an' getcha! Go see if the others need help while you're at it!"

  
He didn't even stick around for the rest of the sentence. With the proxy well on his way to safety Jeff turned back to Unclean Alpha, letting just a tiny bit of power loose. The Unclean tilted it's head; unable to recognize the energy it felt, but already gathering Tears to attack. Jeff felt the burn spread through every part of his body, his vision went red, but he still held it in. He held on until his throat burned, until blood and acid spilled from his mouth. The hiss of the pavement told him all he needed to know.

  
It was ready.

  
"I've been holdin' onto this for just such an occasion. Hallelujah ya fuck!" With that unconventional war cry Jeff unleashed every atom of Sigma he had been holding until this moment. The ground beneath him melted away and sparks flew as the sheer levels of radiation absolutely destroyed any surviving electronics beyond repair. Even the stonework facades of the skyscrapers were reduced to a cement scented slop.

  
The Unclean itself fared no better, literally crumbling to nothing under the onslaught, all the fluids inside it boiling away in an instant. Jeff wasted no time putting it to the blade. And that was it. The last Unclean standing, the largest and strongest of all. Left desiccated and rotting where it stood, only to fall under a single swipe of the blade. The runes blazed gold.

  
Jeff laughed wildly, still swinging. He began to sing. _"One two, one two and through and through. The vorpal blade goes snicker-snack. He left it dead and with it's head he came gallumphing back."_

  
He didn't stop chopping until a rage-filled cry reached his ears. Danny's voice.

  
~*~

  
Without it's phalanx of Unclean the Thunderbird was defenseless. And angry. It turned in that careful way all large birds have to; giving them all a good look at it's face. Judging from the gagging noise Mabel made Dipper was suddenly glad he couldn't see. But Danny could, and that one-eyed glare was something he would never forget. It seemed almost mammalian rather than avian. Especially as the bird screeched, showing off an array of mismatched dentistry.

  
Mabel gagged again. "Okay, I take it back. It's actually really gross. But the feathers are still nice."

  
It lifted off it's perch with barely a flap. It rose higher, turning slowly in the air until it suddenly rushed them. Danny phased through it; Mabel pulled her brother aside as the lead passed through his hand. The Thunderbird shrieked its rage and wheeled around for another pass, bringing hail with it this time. Baseball-sized hail.

  
Danny punched the roof, ripping up a section and bringing it to the twins to take cover under. Even without his vision, Dipper was unwilling to sit by. He reached in the saddlebag and found the pouch of paper charms. He felt them over carefully, sorting through them by the magic they gave off. When he found the one he wanted he tapped Mabel. The charm was meant to neutralize the powers of out of control nature spirits.

  
"Think it'll work, Bro-bro?" She asked, already tying it to her grappling hook.

  
"We don't have anything else, but with the right aim. Then maybe. . ."

  
"Already on it!" As soon as the Thunderbird flew over again Mabel launched the hook. The charmed metal pierced the bird's fleshy beak, rope going taught. The charm flashed and the bird's storms weakened enough for it to notice. It began trying to fly upwards; heading for the colder air to restart it.

  
Mabel gamely held on when she inevitably began to be carried off. Dipper grabbed her waist, leading Danny to pounce on them both. He took the rope himself, wrapped it loosely around his shoulder, and began to pull. The Thunderbird flapped harder; struggling against him like a landed trout.

  
One hard yank and it came tumbling down. But it's flight path had carried it away from the roof, and it fell through the rotting boards that had been laid over one of the nuclear stacks. Danny was after it in an instant, hounding it as it tried to flee. He chased it across it the grounds, lashing it with his own ice storms. Dipper and Mabel were stuck on the roof, huddled under the makeshift shelter. Mabel kept an eye on her brother as he gripped his arm, wanting desperately to help in some way. He needed to think.

  
A faint prick on his chest set him going, and he pulled the old horn from his shirt. He had forgotten it in the chaos of everything. But seeing it now brought him some measure of calm. He found himself pressing the horn against his forehead, the hole resting just over his brow. With a bright flash in his head and an itchy buzz through his arms, Dipper suddenly found himself back with Danny. Only this time he was piggybacking his mind. To his credit, the endigo seemed nonplussed. But he did have more important things on his mind. Like not getting eviscerated by an angry bird-cthulu-thing.

  
_"Danny, can you hear me?"_

  
_"Perfectly, I won't ask why. . . right now."_

  
_"Good, so Mabel's charms weakened it a bit, but if it gets back out in the air we're done for. Try and get it in the open and pin it."_

  
Danny didn't respond, but he did switch tactics; baiting the lightning and slowly leading the Thunderbird out of the power plant entirely. Mabel and Dipper moved to follow only to run into Toby as he came back up to meet them. He filled them in on the fight which forced Dipper to rethink his original plan.

  
_"Danny, head back to the plant! Jeff let out a ton of radiation down there and I don't know how far that spread. Bring it back to the roof and we can deal with it there."_

  
That was a much better plan in the endigo's opinion. He stopped baiting it and turned to face it. He spat a wad of slush at it's only eye. The bird skidded to the side and started rubbing it's face on the ground. Danny took the opening and leaped on its back, sinking his fangs in its neck and wrapping its wings in frost threads. Eyeing his own dying storm, he flicked his wings out and flew back to the plant; gripping his struggling cargo tight. When he passed over he dropped it. The threads snapped and it tried to take off again. Only for another hook to pierce a wing and drag it down. Danny pinned the other wing with a blast of ice and prepared to take out its throat.

  
Instead he was met with the sight of Dipper flinging himself from hiding and charging the bird. He jumped on it and held tight as he carefully climbed to its head. The downed bird began struggling hard; trying to throw the human off it. But Dipper held on, determined to do this. He didn't know what this was until he actually got to the head; saw the eye glare at it. Then he knew. In a move that would make Danny proud (once he got over the possibility of trauma), Dipper let go of its neck, kicked off and landed right on the beak as it swung to grab him.

  
With as much strength as he could muster he clamped its beak shut with one arm, wielding the horn in the other. Like an avenging angel he speared the horn through the Thunderbird's eye. Even then he kept going, thrusting the makeshift dagger into the brain. He held tight as the death throes began. The brain making desperate last attempts to save itself. Unable to dislodge him or think of anything but survival, the Thunderbird began discharging at alarming levels. Under the assault of electricity the ice broke and the Thunderbird flailed at him with a wing, catching him across the chest.

  
The feathers, sharp as blades, cut deep, sending a spray of blood into the air. Dipper staggered, releasing the beak but still holding tight, one hand on the wound. The other keeping the pulsating horn lodged in its head. With all the electricity coursing through him he couldn't have let go anyways. After countless agonizing minutes (seconds?) the body below let out one final charge. The blast sent Dipper flying.

  
Thankfully, Toby manged to catch him; numb body uncaring of the impact. He was bowled over and slid the remaining distance to Danny's feet; the endigo gently pulling Dipper away. He gave a heart-wrenching yowl at the sight of him; wanting nothing more in that moment than to leap on the Thunderbird's corpse and savage it. Mabel's touch steadied him, however. That soft touch and the scent of sugar brought him back to the matter at hand. He cradled Dipper against his chest and hurried back inside with Mabel by him. Toby followed slowly, looking back over the dead bird.

  
He thoughtfully wedged a hatchet against the doorjamb, just in case. In his back pocket a handful of iridescent feathers sparkled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woof, this was a long one! Fight scenes always manage to be the longest chapters for some reason. . .


	51. The Eye of the Storm Brings Healing

In the shadows of the staircase Danny had taken refuge in a pouch of ice. It clung to the underside of the grating like a spider's egg sac. Inside, Dipper was held tightly to him as he carefully, ever so carefully, cleaned him. Tongue moving slowly to wipe the char away with as little pain as possible. Every inch revealed made his core clench tighter. Like a vicious mockery of his own death scar, Dipper's skin was covered in the intricate lacing of an enormous Lichtenburg scar. Worse still the bandages had began to smolder, forcing them to be removed. But at least his eyes hadn't suffered further.

  
With Danny's focus on her brother Mabel took up watch. Toby joined her after resting for a bit and together the two of them kept both ends of the stairwell covered. In an effort to cheer the increasingly stressed girl up Toby had given her the feathers. She gave him a grateful smile that dropped quickly when they heard the door below get smashed in. Inside the pouch Danny began growling and tucking himself closer around Dipper. Mabel had no more ammo for her hook, and so pulled a small, ritually enhanced, taser from her bag. It wouldn't kill but it would stun whatever was coming long enough for them to get to safer ground.

  
She scooted to the very edge of the landing; feeling it vibrate from the force of Danny's growling. She could hear mumbling coming towards them, blissfully recognizable mumbling. She put the taser down and leaped at the voice. "Jeff, you made it!"

  
Jeff caught with her with a grunt. But he looked pleased. "What, ya fuckin' doubted me? Course I made it! So what's with all the rumblin' in here, we cause an earthquake?"

  
Toby leaned over the railing and whispered into the ice pouch right as Jeff noticed it. "It's okay, D-danny. J-jeff's back." He pushed himself back on the landing. "He's r-really upset. Because Dipper g-g-got really badly hurt."

  
"Alright, I'll fight angry mama bear. Move." With no caution at all Jeff hopped over the railing and into the pouch. The thing swung back and forth for a moment, emitting a lot of angry noises, before he climbed back out with frost in his hair and on his skin. But he had Dipper, which was the goal. He laid him on the floor and looked him over; all too aware of the very protective ghost that followed him and was now literally breathing down his neck.

  
There was still some char, and his clothes were too burned to be safe. Jeff, after making the others look away (much to Danny's dismay), quickly stripped them off; having to cut away his shorts as the metal had melted together. He was silently glad that Dipper hadn't discovered going commando yet as that left his underwear intact. He brushed away the remaining soot to better examine the scarring. He was no expert like Eyeless, but he had learned enough from the Foundation's Medical team. Yet even without Eyeless Jack's medical knowledge he could tell the marks would be ugly, but not life-threatening at least. The more pressing concern was the possible neuropathy and heart palpitations; the latter of which he could already hear coming. He needed to work fast.

  
"Danny, quit growlin' at me and help me save your boyfriend!"

  
Hearing someone actually use the word boyfriend snapped him into action. He circled around and watched Jeff closely, waiting for instructions. The Fear listened closely to Dipper's chest. He did not like what he was hearing. "We ain't got much time. You're gonna have to use ghost energy of yours. Gotta be a movin' defibrillator. Don't worry I'll lead ya on the rhythm."

  
His core pulsing with nerves, Danny nonetheless managed to focus a satisfying amount of electricity in his palms. As soon as there was enough Jeff grabbed him and put them on Dipper's bare chest. Even though it was a medical emergency Danny still felt his ears flush and droop. Jeff ignored him. "Let's set this obstinate li'l fucker straight. Now when I tell ya to ya gotta make a burst. Short and strong. Feel for the rhythm of it and. . . GO!"

  
The first shot made him jerk hard, back arching as he choked on air. Danny almost backed off for fear of hurting him, but Jeff's iron grip on his hands get him going. It felt like hours before Jeff went quiet and let him go. Danny crouched down and watched, ears pinned down as he whined slightly.

  
Dipper gasped and sat up, as though he had merely been drowning instead of suffering cardiac arrest. He was almost knocked back down again by his overjoyed sister. Danny approached more cautiously; gently curling around him while still touching as much as he could. Jeff wiped his brow and nodded. "Alright, major crisis averted, let's see what we can do with the other junk."

  
Mabel handed him the bags to dig the first aid out while helping her brother lean against Danny. A mist scarf was gently laid around his neck for water. Danny quickly made more and made everyone drink from them. Then he got Jeff to throw the food stash to him. Expecting the worst, the air having infected it, he carefully opened one. Much to his surprise it was fine; not a speck of rot or decay on any of it. So he passed the food around. Jeff only took a couple cheese sticks; letting them hang from his mouth as he kept looking for something to help Dipper a little more.

  
Then he spotted it. A most unexpected find, but a very welcome one.

  
At the very bottom of the saddlebag was a small metal box; a box none of them remembered packing. A box that Jeff recognized. One of Eyeless' medkits. Inside was all the equipment the cannibal used for his hunting, along with everything needed to maintain the health of the manor residents. Feeling a glimmer of hope he dug through the box until he found a small bag that he also recognized. It had been an apology gift to Eyeless after he had accidentally interrupted a hunt with one of his own killings.

  
First glances would be deceiving. The little plastic baggie contained a handful of innocuous gel pills, dyed red. Nothing too interesting, but Jeff new better. He had "requisitioned" them from the SCP Foundation's supplies, secretly using SCP-038 to duplicate them. They only had one catch. The pills lacked the original's all healing qualities and could only heal damage of certain types. Jeff knew it would heal any serious damage but beyond that it was a tossup. The dose could do anything from fixing a nervous tic to just fixing his sweating problem.

  
" 'Ere. Give 'im one of these an' he'll be right as rain in no time."

  
Danny was understandably suspicious. After all, the last time he had taken a pill, particularly a red one, he wound up in the Rift with no way back until he was actually found. Then again, it was Jeff he was taking them from. Though that only made it marginally better. Either way he took the pill and handed gave it to Dipper. A raised eyebrow was the only sign of his suspicion, but he swallowed the pill.

  
Then they waited.

  
And waited some more.

  
After at least ten minutes, by Danny's guess, Dipper was able to sit up without help, and without wincing. He felt himself over gently. When there was no pain he smiled.

  
"How you feeling, bro-bro?"

  
"Much better, like I just got a week's worth of sleep." Without thinking he opened his eyes to another, much more pleasant surprise. "And I can see a little. . . wow."

  
Apparently he could see enough to notice how everyone else's eyes were glued to his body. He followed them and, though blurry, saw the intricate tracings of white; his fingers feeling the raised lines. Like lightening permanently etched into his skin. He looked to Danny and, even with his poor vision, could tell how sad he looked.

  
Just in case the pill had any other effects, he slowly moved to Danny's side, his left specifically. He pressed close and lifted that arm, holding it against his chest and making Danny look. He didn't want to but Danny found himself drawn to the similarities between his own scars and the ones Dipper was proudly sporting. "Now we match."

  
Danny only smiled faintly.

  
~*~

  
Toby slipped out the door silently. The plant was empty. It seemed that, without the Thunderbird around, there was nothing to draw on. If there were any Unclean left after Jeff's nuke there was nothing to hold their interest. At least around the plant. With the coast clear the others followed after. Even the blurry image of the area was more than enough for Dipper; the mass of Unclean corpses making it all too clear just what had happened.

  
He fiddled with the clasp of Danny's cloak, the only thing covering him besides his hat and Toby's oversized hoodie. With the speed of things seemingly ramping up they couldn't waste time looking for something to replace his own clothes. It was embarrassing, but for the sake of reality he would deal with it. Even the emergency skirt Mabel knitted for him was tolerated (the tiny mothmans on it helped). Though that wasn't stopping him for looking over any piles of clothes for suitable pants.

  
At Jeff's insistence they hurried out of the area. He didn't want them exposed to any Sigma that might still be around; though he recalled the researchers comments about it having almost no half-life. He didn't really understand what that meant, but he was sure it meant they had to move fast. And move they did; right to another rooftop.

  
It was on what appeared to have been a hospital. From there they chose to get their bearings. The lack of available light made it hard to see the map, but it meant they didn't have to go around smashing generators. Jeff was a little disappointed by that. Furthermore, without light there was no sure way for the Unclean to locate them, if any survived, of course.

  
So it was straight to Bill. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun fact: I am my own beta reader since I build up backlog to edit before I post, otherwise my brain sees an empty page and doesn't bother with it. By the time I start editing I've left it long enough that my brain will actually catch grammar mistakes. It might sound hard but really my only rules are 1. Is everything spelled correctly to both mine and spellcheck's satisfaction (keeping in mind spellcheck still believes certain words don't exist e.g. Magickal)? And 2. Is the flow of narrative maintained? If yes to both questions it's good to go!


	52. Dissonant Serenity

Or rather straight to an ambush.

  
The plan had been to head towards an old farmstead Jeff remembered from the Red test, the first test performed on SCP-093. It was so out of the way that it was the most likely spot for Bill to start recovering. The only reason Jeff even recalled it at all was because they had passed a jewelry store that Mabel went through for gemstones to powder; for use in her potions. He had seen a garnet and the color reminded him. But on the way they found themselves caught up in yet another mess. One that was set by some well-known, and painfully annoying, faces.

  
"Hello, Kryptos." Dipper groaned, already done with it. The demon tried to laugh evilly, but was cut short when he coughed out a tooth. He already looked worse for the wear thanks to Mabel kicking him in the mouth and a well placed left hook to the eye from Dipper. It had been a quick fight, but they still wound up caught.

  
The twins were wrapped in a net of metal wire. They were forced to keep still as there was an edge to the wires. It wasn't deadly, but it was sharp enough to make things uncomfortable. Danny had been pinned to the ground by Pyronica and was being held there by her fire. The rest of the Henchmaniacs were keeping a wary distance from Jeff. None of them knew what he would or could do, and weren't willing to risk getting near him or Toby. It didn't matter anyway as he couldn't move; 8-ball had managed to bite a chunk off one of Jeff's legs, which only really served to piss him off further.

  
In a show of superiority, and to forget the pain in his leg as it healed, Jeff ignored their taunts and jeering to question Dipper. "So, what's with these fucks? They Bill's peanut gallery or somethin'?"

  
He was answered by a demonic baby-thing he immediately despised for its pomposity. "I am Paci-fire, slayer of a thousand worlds. We are the Henchmaniacs! But don't worry, you'll learn to appreciate your new masters, young man. Hmm-hmm."

  
Jeff saw red. As the Henchmaniacs started laughing he noticed they were losing interest in their captives. So he stomped his anger down and kept up the act. "My master? Pff, ya look like ya couldn't even master a brain-dead pigeon."

  
An "Ooooh." swept through the crowd, all eyes turning on Paci-fire for his retort. Said retort was to remove his pacifier and breath fire at Jeff. Unafraid of the flames, and now rather enjoying what was looking to be a fight. Jeff grabbed Toby and tossed him in the air, very high, where he stayed. Toby wasn't worried though, he could feel the invisible tendril wrapped around him. It was a neat little illusion, and one that grabbed the remaining minions' attention.

  
Jeff scoffed. "Big deal. Ya can breathe fire and ya have two mouths. I know a guy who can do the same thing and he's got five more mouths than ya do. Oh, that's seven in case the math was too complicated."

  
"I have destroyed countless worlds." Paci-fire repeated.

  
"Yeah, yeah. It wasn't impressive the first time it ain't gonna be the next." This little tete a tete was getting fun.

  
"It will be impressive when I devour your family, child!"

  
And now it wasn't.

  
The red was back, big time. Jeff swore he felt something crack in his head. Or maybe that was Paci-fire's head. It did seem to be rather. . . open all of a sudden. And bloody. And he was pretty sure there was brain matter stuck to his hand. His feet were wet too, come to think of it. Was that a tongue underfoot? He stomped his unbitten foot. It went through a tooth. _'I appear to be waist deep in a mouth. Odd.'_

  
The Henchmaniacs practically trampled each other in a rush to escape the monster in front of them. Even as he continued to massacre Paci-fire, his face betrayed none of his anger. Like a porcelain doll, he remained passive as the gore spread. He even found himself singing; the tune slipping through his lips in an almost tender tone. Then dying to a quiet hum.

  
_"Baju-bajuški-baju, ne ložisja na kraju._   
_Pridët seren’ki volčok i uhvatit za bočok._   
_On uhvatit za bočok i potaŝit vo lesok, i potaŝit vo lesok."_

  
And he just wouldn't stop.

  
He didn't stop when Paci-fire was a bloody pile of gore. He didn't stop when Pyronica's head left her shoulders and crushed Teeth. Even when 8-ball fell to his knees, begging for mercy. And all the while he kept humming that gentle lullaby.

  
It was suddenly very, terrifyingly, clear that he wouldn't stop because he _couldn't_.

  
For the first time since they had met, Dipper was well and truly afraid of Jeff.

  
Even Danny was scared, but it didn't stop him; he needed to save the twins. With Pyronica off him, her flames died out so he swiftly released Dipper and Mabel. But they wouldn't take one step towards the seething Fear. Those feelings didn't matter to Toby. With all the vim of a man who slapped God in the ballsack and lived to tell about it, he squirmed loose and climbed down the rigid tendril, letting himself fall directly on Jeff's back. The abrupt weight served to snap him out of whatever fugue he had been in. At least a little.

  
He looked around, almost seeming lost, at the carnage he didn't remember causing. Carefully, he removed himself from the mass of black chum that was Paci-fire. A hand, trembling from the exertion, reached for some sort of comfort. He found Toby's hand and took it; holding as tightly as he dared. His one good eye was nearly black, pupil blown wide by adrenaline. It all added together to make an unnervingly shark-like appearance. Albeit one that was more than a little unhinged. For once Toby was the still one; Jeff shaking as hard as his worst episodes.

  
A slow applause broke the silence. Followed by Bill fading into view, eye first. "Well, well. That was pretty impressive, Sourire Ange! Paci-fire's one of my toughest, well, WAS one of my toughest minions. Hat's off to you!"  
Bill's hat jumped off his head and did a celebratory dance. As soon as the triangle spoke Danny whipped around and charged him; all teeth and fangs and ice. Bill grabbed him by the tail and tossed him to the ground. He rolled to his feet and kept growling. The demon ignored him, and the twins, completely. He only had eye for the Fear and the Proxy.

  
Danny's growl grew to deafening levels as he floated towards them, overlaid with the deep rumbling coming from Jeff. Bill stopped just in front of them, close enough that his eye filled their vision. "I really am impressed, y'know. In fact I'd like to give you a little gift!"

  
He snapped his fingers and a heavy burlap bag landed in front of Jeff. The smell it gave off was horrendous. He kicked it away with his shin, wingeing as it folded around his leg briefly before rolling a short distance off. It made a wet sound as it came to a stop. "I don't want your bullshit, Cipher. The best thing ya could give would be fixin' your shit and fuckin' off for good."

  
Bill made a show of considering the offer. Tapping his foot, scratching his chin(?), and pacing in the air. Then he spun back to him with his eye glowing red; Jeff's own sigil burning white inside it. "NO CAN DO, KID! This is some pretty sweet real estate here. A perfect first step for reality!"

  
Nothing more was said. The cause of the trouble was in front of him and Jeff was going to deal with it right then and there. Numb to the world, he braced his knife against his shoulder like a spear and jumped right at his eye. With Bill's powers still weak he hadn't seen the attack coming. So he was faced with a blade straight through him. He hollered and roared as the blade's runes sparked wildly, eventually blasting Jeff back.

  
He smacked into Danny and the endigo scruffed him. With a swipe of his tail he knocked the raging demon away and grabbed the twins along the way. Toby jumped on his back as he ran past. With all of them safely in tow, Danny high-tailed it away from the farmhouse, heading deeper into the outskirts. For the second time that day, Jeff simply went along, stunned into silence by his actions.

  
~*~

  
"At least time works here, kind of." Dipper sighed, a blurry view of the dark sky all he had to go by. Not that it would have done much good, according to Toby none of the normal constellations were there. All the stars were different.

  
In the time it had taken to fully lose Bill night, of a sort, had fallen in the outskirts. No one was willing to make a light of any kind, lest it attract the attention of any outlying Unclean. Though Jeff had made it a point to mention only smaller ones were out this far. Jeff was another issue. Beyond the occasional bit of information, he had stayed quiet. Not even Toby had been able to get a rise from him. This lead to the others gathering close to try and bring him out of it.

  
So far nothing had really worked; even Danny actually pinning him to the ground and putting his head in his mouth did nothing more than make him grumble and prod his uvula. The resulting gag didn't shake him out of it either. Leaving them to regroup for another go. Danny crouched beside Toby, whispering to him. "Any idea what's wrong with him? Other than some serious PTSD."

  
Toby nudged the killer, jabbing him hard enough to bruise. Normally this would get a surefire response; even if was just to smack him. Still nothing. "I d-don't know. I've n-never seen him do this b-before. Killing doesn't b-bother him at all. B-but that guy said something about his family."

  
"Family is a sore spot then. I wonder how long ago that was for him." Danny settled down, laying his head on his arms and just watching. If they couldn't bring him out of it themselves then he would wait. That didn't mean he would ignore him, however. Far from it, Danny kept a close on eye Jeff, reading him for anything that might indicate a downward spiral. "But it's not like he's alone now. And he's doing a good job protecting his new family after all."

  
The comment, offhand though it was, managed to worm it's way passed Jeff's haze and lodge itself in a particular part of his brain. It proceeded to spread like the plague until it was all he could think of in that moment. _'I have a family? Fuck, I got a family again!'_

  
He blinked, slowly waking up. Toby saw his eyes light up and tackled him. The twins followed close and Danny just stood; the tip of his tail wagging. As the others got Jeff upright and eating he took the chance to simply think. Jeff's state, similar to a berserk state though it was, had been too calm to be a case of shock or adrenaline blindness. It was more like he had gotten so angry that he went numb. Maybe the sheer level of emotion he experienced made his brain shutdown somehow?

  
Hearing Jeff talk, albeit quiet and more than a little scratchy, behind him stopped his train of thought. What did it matter why it happened? It happened and the important thing was to be there for him the next time. Although keeping it from happening at all would be better. But that wasn't his business, we would just make sure Toby let them know about it. Though he had a sneaking suspicion the Slenderman already knew. It wasn't exactly his place to pry, anyway. So he dropped it.

  
He could hear Dipper's voice, already laying out a new plan, as he joined them by what he thought was a fire they finally risked lighting. He could smell the runic slips in the flames though and nodded. The twins had elected to simply set up a heat source rather than actual fire, which gave off no light. A good thing, it turned out, as whatever Dipper was planning was clearly getting him riled up; his hands flying over the heat pit. A real fire would have left him burned by now. And given them away.

  
"-- so if Bill already has enough power to get his Henchmaniacs here, however long that lasted." Jeff flushed. "Than time is shorter than we thought. It may be a better idea to leave and regroup. The quicker the better."

  
He noticed him joining. "This is getting to be too much for just us. We need to get back home. Danny can we get a portal back to the house to grab the others?"

  
"Yeah, about that." He lifted a claw and dragged open a small portal. It wobbled weakly before vanishing with a sickly plop. "I can't get a portal to stay open long enough to get even a bug through. I'm pretty sure Bill is keeping this a one way only dimension."

  
He stopped again, rocking back and forth as he tried to think of yet another new plan. His brain already strained by the events of the day. They were, by all appearances, completely closed in by this dimension. Leaving by the barrier was still an option, but it had taken an entire day to reach this point. And with them all exhausted (though Jeff and Danny hid it well), it would take even longer to get back. Plus, with his luck it would be impassable as well.

  
Something started buzzing loudly. The sudden sound stunned them, and they all watched as Mabel pulled her phone, wrapped in layers of wool thick enough to stop a bullet, out. There was a voice mail. From Stanford Pines. She frantically opened it and put it on speaker. Ford's voice came through, skipping like an old record.

  
"Mabel, Bill's statue, it's gone! We're coming your way ASAP to start the-- wait. STAN! Let him go you- GAAAH!"

  
Laughter echoed over them, a perfect double of the laughing from the phone, accompanied by a flash in a cloudless sky for emphasis. Bill boasting obviously. Dipper stared at the unfamiliar stars hopelessly as Mabel's phone turned off. He felt out of options, and too tired to try anymore. He stood up and paced slowly, head empty. Jeff tried to cheer him up.

"Ya beat 'em before didn't ya? Or did I miss part of that story?" Jeff put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him from wandering right into another another, slowly dripping, pile of tears.

  
Dipper tossed the hand away with a frustrated hiss. "Yeah, but we had Ford with us. Grunkle Ford knew everything, and it still took Grunkle Stan destroying his own mind to stop him! We don't. . . we can't risk that this time."

  
His voice dropped to a frightened whisper. He began to shake. "That's it then. We can't stop him this time and he knows it. Bill's won."

  
Mabel let out a gasp, pulling her brother close; sheltering him in the cover of her sweater and her hair. She was at a loss. Dipper never gave up, he always found a way out. Even Jeff was put off. He hadn't known the twins for very long, but between Dipper's resourcefulness and Mabel's endless positivity he had been sure they could handle anything. _'In the end they're still kids. Can't believe I got forgot that.'_

  
He still had one thing to say though. "I ain't too well versed in demons, but even the media puts some damn heavy emphasis on 'em havin' circles an' shit. Bill's gotta have one too. Ain't it some sorta. . . universal law?"

  
A spark lit in Dipper's eyes at that. He jumped out of the protective hug and rushed towards Danny. He dug through the saddlebags until he found what he was looking for, Journal 2. "During Weirdmaggedon, we tried to use this circle to. . . banish Bill. At least that's what Grunkle Ford said would happen."

  
"But you just heard the message! Bill's got our Grunkles, and everyone else is still in Gravity Falls. Without Danny's portals there's no way we can get to them in time!"

  
Dipper stared hard at the demon wheel. His determination was back; along with that particular look he got when was about to try something crazy.

  
"Then we make a new one."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooh boy Dipper got a wild hair going! When the world goes crazy you've gotta match it.


	53. When All You Have is a Drill Start Making Holes

With a concrete plan of action in mind Jeff lead them to safer ground. Danny carried the twins while Mabel went through Journal 1 for ways to modify the circle. Occasionally she would glance over to her brother, who was working out the appropriate symbols in the other journal. Good luck was with them as he was able to leave theirs alone. So that left finding the equivalents for the rest. Seeing him leaning so close to the page made her giggle. "You look like Grunkle Stan driving without his glasses."

  
Dipper laughed. "Mabel, Grunkle Stan can't drive with his glasses!"

  
The twins shared some good laughs as the joke brought back memories of driving with Stan. Particularly the memory of Ford being in the car for the first time while he did. Poor man looked like he had seen Bill in the shower. He never got in that car again after that.

  
The circle, on the other hand, wasn't much of a circle so far. It was a mess of random words and pictures. Dipper had figured out that they could cut the numbers down to six or seven people before imbalances started occurring. And since they had more than half of that covered already he felt a little less frantic. Still, whoever took up the remaining spaces had to be pretty powerful to pick up the slack. He was sure Danny could handle some of that workload. Jeff probably could too, though his absolute strength was still a mystery. Which left two humans with magickal training and one without. Though Toby did have a lot of energy that could be converted to magic.

  
He was mainly being curtailed by the symbols themselves. Each one had to have a connection to the person; either literal or metaphorical. And it needed to be a significant connection. Finding a replacement for them was proving almost impossible. Mabel grumbled and chewed her hair, having just as much trouble.

  
Danny flicked the back of his head with his tail just then, knocking his hat askew. "Maybe you should start with our personalities instead of immediately trying to replace the pictures? Magic isn't really my thing but I've picked up enough to figure that that might be better then just going blind."

  
_'Oh, that does make more sense.'_ Dipper crossed out the row of symbols he had been looking at and started back at the beginning. Using Danny's method did make it easier; remembering what the original symbols meant for the bearer. By the time Jeff had found a bunker in the far hills he had managed to come up with at least two.  
Danny's had been simple enough, a crown and shield to show his status as both king and protector. Toby was represented by a sprig of Baby's breath, reflecting his innocence despite being a killer. But without anyone else to work with he was forced to leave the rest of the circle empty. Along with Jeff's spot.

  
That one was giving him more trouble than anything else.

  
A literal image wouldn't work, he knew that by instinct. There was no one picture that could be associated with him; at least none that he could think of. How did one go about showing abnormality anyway? Historically, such things were represented by people and animals; conjoined twins, stillbirths in livestock, and people who rallied against societal standards. Jeff's power seemed to encompass all that and then some. He could use his sigil, but Jeff made that himself. From what he understood of the magic involved the symbol used had to be something that came naturally to the person.

  
Then there was the fact that he knew so little of Jeff beyond him being a Fear with violently protective tendencies towards children. He was sarcastic and genuine, helpful and hindering, smart and idiotic all at once. He loved being around monsters, had possibly been in love with some, but would not hesitate to murder them if necessary. If Dipper wanted to be nerdy about it he would say he was true chaotic good. But even that didn't always apply.

  
So for now he was stuck, but he would continue to work on it while they located Bill again. Jeff's knife had worked him over something awful, and the demon would most likely be ducking out just as they were. Speaking of cover Danny stopped in front of a large boulder; faint hints of rust wafted from behind it. Apparently Jeff knew what it was as he quickly started trying to move the boulder.

  
"It's an old research vault." Jeff said, digging the rock out of the mud. "Foundation set it up 'ere after a couple of tests went wrong an' they lost some folks. The guys they lost never showed up, but they were D-class anyway. 'Cept for the one scientist who just had to come back for his damn clipboard. Anyway, I don't think it's too big inside but ya'll should fit with some room to spare."

  
The boulder was firmly stuck in years-old mud, prompting Jeff to give it a grumpy kick and cuss it out. Danny took that as his cue. He shouldered the stone and slowly, it was surprisingly dense, hefted it from the mud and rolled it aside. Behind it was a metal door, heavily rusted yet still sturdy. Any form of lock it may have had was long gone, and any keyhole was blocked off by warped metal. Jeff traced over the door for an emergency lock, then wedged his tendrils through the hinges when he couldn't find one.

  
Between the two of them, they made quick work of the shelter door; at the cost of being able to put it back. Their efforts had bent it nearly in half. Danny took point, peeking in. All that he found were spiders dead in their webs and the smell of burnt dust. Just a few steps in was an open fuse box, wires exposed but intact. Danny poked it with his horn and felt a faint surge of electricity. "I think I can power this place up. Should I go for it?"

  
After some debate about the safety of it they agreed to get the lights on; it would be dangerous to wander in the dark after all. As long as they covered the entrance. The door was shot, but with the boulder unstuck Jeff was able to roll it back into place. That done Danny slotted his horn in the exposed wires and sent a faint charge through. The lights buzzed briefly, giving him the signal he needed. He pierced the rubber just enough to hit the copper wire and let go.

  
A few of the bulbs burst as he felt out the correct voltage, but soon enough the lights were on and holding steady. He swept the broken glass to the side and went ahead to see how far the light went. The entryway was eerily similar to Grunkle Ford's emergency bunker, minus the death-traps. Mabel whistled, and it echoed for a long time. "What is it with sciency guys and building creepy fallout bunkers?"

  
"I thi-think it's an insti-inct. Like b-birds." Toby said, wincing as his arm jerked and hit the wall. Though it was less in pain and more surprise. The hallway was narrowing. He heard Jeff call for single file and put Mabel in front of him to cover the rear. He pulled a hatchet from his belt, holding it loosely but ready. From the front of the line came a metallic screeching and a heavy thud.

  
"Looks like the main lab. Everyone gather up." Danny stepped aside and urged everyone in quickly. The group immediately spread out to investigate and look for anything useful. Jeff's interest was drawn by a large object covered in a dingy green sheet. It was as tall as Danny's shoulder and smelled strongly of chemicals. Whatever it was had been left facing the wall. But it was clearly designed to move as he could see heavy treads sticking out of the bottom. Curiosity caved in and, with little in the way of ceremony or even concern for the machine, Jeff ripped off the sheet.

  
"Well fuck me runnin'. Take a look at this pile of junk!"

The others stopped and turned. Danny blinked. The machine in front of them looked just like a gold-plated fake that had fooled his parents during his time among the one percent. Back before the technology for such a thing even existed. But this was the real deal, he was certain.

  
"A dimensional drill, and hopefully a working one." He drew closer and found it to be almost exactly like that fake. Though it was lacking the espresso machine. It was also much better built under the rust. The whole body was tightly sealed, with little in the way of seams or visible rivets. He dragged a claw along the side until it hooked a small lip that was nearly invisible. It was a struggle, but he got the panel open and found the controls. A simple arrangement of old computer parts and a CRT screen for the monitor. "Those people who got lost must have built it to try and get home."

  
"C-can it do th-at?" Toby muttered, peeking around his wings.

  
Dipper stopped writing out symbols, grateful for something else to focus on. He got down and stretched out his legs. "Even if it can it may not be worth the risk. Bill will know if we try and break down the barrier. At least he probably will. He did during Weirdmaggedon."

  
Now focused on the device, Danny only vaguely acknowledged his concerns. He searched around the access panel for some sort of power button. He found a surge protector wired in and flipped it on. The drill whirred and clunked like a can full of rocks, but it was working. As soon as the screen was on Danny began navigating the code; searching for target coordinates or some way of indicating where the drill had been meant to go. Of which there were none.

  
Danny chuffed. "So it looks like they never got the chance to actually use it, but I think I can turn it on. If I do then it would be best to send it to the Ghost Zone. Since the last thing we want is Bill finding us again before we're ready. The drill bit needs to be replaced though. Preferably by something with a spectral component to help lead the drill since I have no way of knowing the dimensional relations between here and the Ghost Zone."

  
Dipper looked down, just slightly bewildered by what Danny had said. He pulled the horn from his neck and handed it over. "Will this work?"

  
His fingers shook as it was taken. Already he felt cold without the horn's energy buzzing against him. He hadn't said it to anyone, not wanting to worry them more, but that shard of crystal was the reason he was alive right now. It had taken the brunt of the Thunderbird's final attack; he had felt it absorbing the lightning. Without it now he felt all too vulnerable. But he resisted the urge, powerful as it was, to snatch it back from Danny. He was rewarded with an excited grin and bone-crushing hug. "This will be perfect! Now I just need to find a way to shape and fit it."

  
Re-energized by Danny's eagerness (and in no small part by the hug) Dipper sought out whatever the lost men had used for tools. These he found relatively quickly, piled haphazardly under another tattered cloth. Thankfully, they were in good enough shape; the rust only surface level. Dipper polished it off and brought them all over.

  
Tools in hand it took little effort for Danny to get the drill working. After checking and rechecking the fit of the horn, everyone rolled it up to the nearest wall and he fired it up. A progress bar appeared on the screen along with an ETA reading. "So, the good news is now we have a way out. The bad news is we have to either fight Bill or stay hidden for another couple hours."  
Everyone sighed.

  
"Look on the bright side. At least it's something."

  
~*~

  
There wasn't much else to do in the shelter. Whichever retrieval team that had built it had only focused on getting out. They did leave some things behind, however. Enough to hint at why they had been really there. The Foundation had hoped to set up another facility in the dimension to better study the Unclean and the history of the place. Clearly that had fallen through. Jeff tucked the half-written reports in the saddlebags. He knew they would want them.

  
A loud banging shook the tunnels, stopping them all in their tracks.

  
**_"Peekaboo, I FOUND YOU!"_ **

  
Bill's hand punched into the shelter. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Danny got to nerd out a little here. He may not like to admit it because of how they used it, but he still picked up a lot of engineering and tech know how from his parents.


	54. A Series of Concurrent Events

Danny threw up a shield to deflect the fist as it came down too close to the drill. It sputtered, rocking on its treads and sending a surge of alarm through the room. The twins and Toby righted it and it thankfully continued on as though nothing had happend. Jeff plunged his old knife in Bill's wrist as he felt around for all of them, forcing him back again. "Hate to say it, but we gotta get the fuck out right now! He'll bust the drill if we stay!"

  
Reluctantly the group obeyed. Danny took one last check on the drill before putting a dome of his hardest ice around it as insurance. With the temperature around it lowered he found he could increase the speed. So he put it as high as it could go without damaging the machine and ran, scooping up anyone that was in his way. Then he briefly went invisible as they passed the entrance. A quick swipe of the tail smashed the fuse box, the resulting spark bright enough to temporarily blind the demon as he turned towards the sound of footsteps.

  
Danny took to the air as Bill could still hear him run; doing his best to quiet the faint whir of his wings. Jeff was still on the ground. They locked eyes and nodded to each other. Jeff started yelling insults in every language he knew (including a lot of Nahuatl). Bill instantly switched focus in favor of the person who just insulted the efficiency of his latent ambulatory chakras; a nonsense phrase to be sure, but effective. Jeff hopped away from the demon, keeping his good eye on the raging triangle and watching his friend's heat signatures through his false eye. The hardest part was balancing all of this while still watching out for some way he could skip out of there.

  
The whole "all seeing eye" bit of Cipher's made that last part irritatingly difficult. He swore as a laser scorched the ground inches from him, he side-jumped to dodge the next shot. When a third laser blocked him for a grab he decided fuck it and hopped through as soon as the fingers brushed the ground. He could feel the Rift try and snag him, to hold on to him longer and help him get further. But Bill's power yanked him out far too quickly. Still he was able to get far enough away for the demon to lose him.

  
From his new position in a dead bush Jeff kept an eye on the situation. Bill was looking for the other part of the team, but having no luck. He could see them though, a tiny dot of red from the twins' body heat. He saw Bill lean towards the shelter and prayed to whatever might be listening that he didn't see the drill. His prayers went unanswered, at least temporarily. Bill's pupil narrowed and he reached towards the covered device. As he touched it a loud, liquid roaring sounded. Then Bill was pushed back by a geyser of boiling water; shooting from all possible entrances to the shelter.

  
The water gathered at his feet and pulled him down, piling up like gel. Inside it Jeff could see the bodies of Campers grappling with the demon. Lady Salmacis appeared beside him. _"We will hold him. Go to your friends."_

  
"Don't gotta tell me twice." He was gone like a shot, keeping low to avoid drawing attention. Although with the numbers of Campers doggedly attempting to get in his eye like wayward lashes, he doubted that would happen. He followed the spot of red until it landed behind another farmhouse; this one in such good condition that it left him worried. Still, Danny wouldn't have landed if it was unsafe. That didn't stop him from doing a quick scan of his own. He breathed a sigh of relief at the empty house, and made his way towards it.

  
~*~

  
When the rush of water happened Danny and his cargo had glanced back for a brief second. The sheer amount of it had been awe-inspiring. And more than a little horrifying. A chance was a chance however, and he took it, not looking back again.

  
The farmhouse he landed beside turned out to have been built over a fallout shelter and was still unused. After carefully checking over all the food available, namely for tears, he let everyone tuck in; which they did gratefully. Danny stayed at the door and kept watch, tail-tip twitching as he spotted Jeff heading towards them. He tossed him a can of mixed fruit and returned to his post. "Bill didn't get the drill did he?"

  
"Naw," Jeff said through a mouthful of fruit. "A friend of mine showed up before that happened."

  
Danny relaxed at that. He figured the water had been something Jeff did, that just confirmed it. So far the drill was their best bet of getting help so keeping it safe was priority. Speaking of that. "I just had a thought: how are we going to get back to it? Bill will probably be watching the shelter by this point."

  
"I don't think we need to." Mabel said. Everyone turned to look at her. "It's just a weird feeling I'm getting. But I think we just need to leave it alone and keep going ourselves."

  
The others kept staring. All except Dipper, who nodded along. Mabel's intuition was second to none when it came to things like this. It wasn't a situation that came up often, but if she said to leave it be then that was what he would do. The rest didn't look too convinced though. Even Danny was counting on leaving through the Ghost Zone; if he couldn't be swayed then this whole dimension might be Bill's soon. So he set aside his food and pulled the ghost over.

  
To his credit Danny listened to his arguments, but there was still a conflict in him. He didn't have as much faith in Mabel's instincts as he did his own, and they were still pulling him to the Zone. Finally Dipper decided to play dirty. He reached out and started scratching under Danny's ears. The ghost began to purr while he tried to reason with him. "I know you want to get us all out of here, keep us safe, I get that. I'm also sure that things are just as bad outside. But we have a chance to kill the root of this right now so I say we take it. If Mabel says that depends on leaving the portal alone then that's what we should do."

  
Danny, relaxed as he was, still hesitated. He shook free of the heavenly scratches and paced. Eventually coming to rest in front of Mabel. As if knowing what he wanted, she looked him dead in the eye. He stared at her; past her eyes, reading her energy instead. What he saw convinced him beyond a shadow of a doubt. A faint connection to the Clocktower; something he had only ever seen in true Oracles. Somehow or other, maybe in past life, she had gained Clockwork's approval and been given some Foresight. It wasn't as strong as an actual Oracle, but it was enough for him to trust her completely.

  
The change did not go unnoticed. Dipper was smiling while Jeff and Toby simply shrugged. This was not their area of expertise, and they were happy to let the ones who knew what to do take the wheel. So they sat back while the three talked. Dipper showed them the current form of Cipher's wheel, along with what he had learned while making it. Danny chuckled at the choice for Toby but agreed that it fit. Danny couldn't help puffing up in pride, just a bit, when Dipper explained his reasoning for his sign. Yet they were all just as stumped on just what Jeff's sign should be. They knew so much and so little about him that the decision was too difficult.

  
Jeff weighed in from across the room. "Don't worry 'bout it right now. Ya'll will get it when ya get it. Shit like that just works itself out. Least in my experience it does."

  
It wasn't much help, but it was enough to get Dipper to put the journal away again. He resolved to follow Jeff's advice and not stress over it. The insight would come at the right time. Hopefully it wouldn't wait until the last possible second. When the noise outside died down he went with Danny to peek. It didn't take long for them to see why.

  
Bill had moved to the final phases. The ground rumbled as chunks of earth lifted away. The sky was beginning to shift colors again, looking far too much like the eye-searing shades of the Nightmare Realm. He had regained enough power to open the door fully, and was now in the midst of reconstructing the Fearamid. Henchman or no.

  
Looked like it was now or never.

  
~*~

  
Bill was there to greet them when they attacked. "Ho ho, you're late Pine Tree. Not a good impression to make on your future ruler, you know."

  
When no one answered he just shrugged and continued. "I've had some time to think about things, though. That bath put me in a good mood so I've decided I'm not gonna destroy you. Yet. I'm giving you all one last chance here. Agree to serve me and I'll let your families live. Whattya say, deal?"

  
He extended a flame covered hand. The answer came in the form of an icy Wail that coated his hand in rime, putting out the flames with a demonic hiss. Bill yelped and shook it off. He looked back to see them all at the ready, and he went red. "Alright! That's it. You don't want to live then I can make that happen."

  
Jeff and Danny leapt into the fray first, keeping Bill away from Toby. The proxy was responsible for keeping the twins safe; buying time for Dipper to work on the circle. Any attempt by Bill to reach them was met with a flurry of hatchet blows that cut deeply. The wounds healed as fast as they were made, but it was clear that the energy put in to doing so was wearing him down. He still wasn't at a hundred percent, and it showed.

  
Jeff darted between his legs to hold his attention while Danny flew at his face to attack his eye. Bill anticipated it and formed a shield, sending his claws glancing off with a painful burn. He fell and rolled to a stop. Jeff spun in his direction, jerking away as a laser touched down in front of him; greatly magnified by the conjured shield. He stumbled back and stared into the pit it had made. A rush of cold air told him Danny was airborne again. He used the distraction to jump down the hole and travel in the Rift for a second.

  
He was pulled out, to his surprise, in the knot of Bill's bow-tie. He grinned wickedly. This was good chance, probably the only chance he would get to permanently stop him from gaining power. He closed his good eye to focus entirely on the false one. Shutting out the sounds of Danny's war screams, and the constant rush of air from Bill spinning around. Many lights and shapes began to appear in his peripheral, including one very close one. Before he wouldn't have had a name for such a source, but his exposure to Danny and his world lead him to call such things cores.

  
So with the rune-engraved knife wrapped tightly in his tendrils, he began the cautious climb to the glowing core. He squashed down a laugh as he realized his situation was an exact mirror of a game he watched BEN play once. Right down to the climbing around on a giant monster to stab a shiny thing. He thanked whatever deities drawn to them all that Danny was able to hold Bill's ire long enough for him to finish his journey. He braced himself by digging his sharp nails and spikes in the smooth surface. Rustling gently, the tendrils unwrapped and held the blade at the ready.

  
What came next happened quickly. Bill swung a burning hand at Danny, sending him tumbling. Danny hit Jeff and knocked him loose, getting Bill's attention. As they both fell the blade went down and cut cleanly; halting their fall. The runes flared to life and surged towards the core, burying deeply inside. The tainted energy disrupted his form, pain wracking his body as cracks opened and began to ooze bright orange slime.

  
Jeff yanked the blade free, narrowly dodging a brick that went flying from Bill briefly. Bill swiftly retreated a distance. His two attackers backed off as well, watching each other warily. A hatchet whizzed past their heads at that moment and embedded in Bill's eye. That was the final straw for him. He extended an arm and began to concentrate. In his palm a void appeared, flashing the same colors as the nightmare portal.

  
Dipper stopped, distracted by the change in atmosphere. He stared at it and blinked. _'Portal? Wait that's it!'_

  
The ball of darkness grew larger, Mandelbrot rainbows scattering across its surface. Bill moved to bring it down on them with a triumphant cry. _"It's over now. **Welcome to eternal slavery!** "_

  
Danny locked up as it dropped, panicked. _'No please, don't make me go through that again. Please someone. Clockwork, Hecate, Santa Muerte I beg you please!!'_

  
~*~

  
Inside the broken shelter the drill continued to plug away at its task. Sending rumbles through the dimensional tunnel. The shaking strong enough to reach the other side. The quakes caused a second tunnel to open, splitting right alongside the main tunnel as quickly as it formed.

  
The screen began to flash; numbers blinking rapidly.

  
_**ETA 3 Seconds. . .** _   
_**2 Seconds. . .** _   
_**1** _   
_**Destination Reached.** _

  
The spectral army tensed as the world around them began to tremble. Seconds later it stopped and two massive holes appeared in the sky; pulling the sky inwards like twin whirlpools. In that instance their forces split. The Ancients and Far Frozen flying through the nearest, from which the smell of rust and decay emanated. Princess Dorathea lead her forces through the second tunnel. She emerged on a street overrun by nightmarish beasts.

  
Before she could comprehend what she was seeing, someone called for help. Without a second thought she directed her armies to the voice; recognizing Danny's scent all over. "Men, we defend this land to our final spark! In the name of the King!"

  
"Deus Vult!" The army roared in return and charged.

  
~*~

  
Death was listening in that moment because a proud voice called out. "Not quite, you wretch!"

  
A mass of green energy slammed into the demon, pulling him to the ground. The cloud resolved into the forms of hundreds of white furred beasts; all pouring from the rip in the sky to destroy the ball of madness. A second ball formed in Bill's fist, aimed at the ghosts. Only to be interrupted by a much calmer voice announcing, "Time out."

  
Those words put a halt to everything, literally. Only Danny remained unaffected, but that changed as a cloaked figure moved through the group, placing a medal on each of them. Danny felt he could cry from happiness. "Clockwork!"

  
The time ghost draped his arm over Danny as he rubbed against him happily. Clockwork looked over the ragged group warmly, smiling when Jeff fell over in relief. He may not have know who he was, but he could tell he was strong and that was enough for him. Danny had jumped from Clockwork to greet Frostbite and Nocturne, the latter of which wasn't too sure what to do with the affection. It wasn't long before the rest of them gathered close, taking a measure of comfort from the Ancients' presence while telling them everything they had seen and experienced.

  
Except for Dipper, he remained frozen in place. He had taken one look at the new arrivals, the medallion around his neck, and began writing like his life depended on it. There was a near manic gleam in his eye. But it was the good kind, without a doubt.

  
Above them Bill snarled in frustration, beating the sides of his top point with his fists, blue flames shooting from his eye. "It's always something with you idiots! Fine," The flames went out, and he brushed himself off. "If I can't capture you or make you join me. I'll just have to kill you in the most horrible way possible. Starting with you, Pine Tree!"

  
Bill snapped his fingers. Something wet and brown appeared in his hand. Bill spun around, hurling what looked like a deflated leather sack at them; aimed directly at Mabel and Dipper. Jeff recognized it as part of an Unclean; saw the Tears oozing from it. He leaped in front of the twins, lancing the flesh with a tentacle, resulting in it hitting him and knocking him down. The move saved them at the cost of liberally coating Jeff in the Holy Tears. Jeff braced himself for death. A burning pain as he dissolved, numbness, anything.

  
But nothing happened. . .

  
Panicking Toby reached to pull it off. Danny stopped him and levitated the corpse away; all of them expecting to be met with nothing but clothes. They were all pleasantly surprised to find Jeff, intact and alive, swearing like a drunk sailor during a bad storm. They weren't the only ones confused, but Jeff just wiped the gunk away with the already extended tentacle.

  
"Wait, why isn't it working on you? Everyone else was a pile of nothing in seconds." Mabel asked, blinking incredulously.

  
Jeff simply snipped off the goo-covered tentacle, like a lizard dropping its tail. Only when it was disconnected did it melt. "Couldn't tell ya. But since this stuff only works on the "impure" then whatever I am is as pure as it gets."

  
"Of course!" Frostbite dropped a fist in his palm, startling them all with how quietly he had approached. "You are the Fear of the Abnormal, one of the Unknown; possibly even the ultimate unknown! Human's fears all come from something being outside of their comfort zone, something they do not understand. Meaning you are practically the Mother, or Father, of all Fears! You are Abnormality at its purest, and thus unaffected by the Holy Tears."

  
Danny heaved himself up, Mabel hopping up on his back. "Well then, from a king to weird incarnate; what do you say we show this wannabe nightmare some real fear?"

  
Jeff let a manic grin spill over his face, eyes alight with an energy he hadn't felt since his very first kill. He growled excitedly. "Let's end this."


	55. Hell to Bill's Doorstep

Truly enraged by this latest failure, Bill lost all control of his form. He writhed about turning into a bizarre conglomeration of triangles and sacred geometry; every inch flashing colors the human mind should never see. Or any mind for that matter. The Fearamid fell, power drained for fuel, to land behind him, breaking apart to surround him in a whirlwind of sanity ripping hellstorms and cold stone. Bill had fallen so far in his own insanity that all he could do was laugh. At this point a full charge would only create casualties, and distracting him was out of the question. Bill was too lost to think of anything but destruction.

  
Dipper finally pulled his head out of the journal to take stock of things. To say he didn't like what he saw was like saying peanut allergies kill. Jeff stood beside him. "Ya know this won't be like Weirdmaggedon right? We stop this guy an' the effects don't just go away."

  
Dipper stared grimly ahead. He had realized that long ago. "It won't be easy. . . but I'll do what I can to help."

  
Jeff ruffled his hair. "Wouldn't ask for more from ya."

  
He looked between the zodiac wheel and their new allies. He still had two spaces left to fill and the ghosts were clearly strong enough. But he wouldn't be able to work on it and help out at the same time. As much as he hated to he needed to duck out of the fight. As he expressed this concern Danny lifted him up and nuzzled him, pressing close to his cheek. "And you won't be alone. Remember, figuring out that circle is your job. You can't do it if you aren't safe. We'll cover you while you get it finished. Don't worry."

  
He stayed quiet, frowning as Frostbite took him aside. He assured him that his Frozen would guard him while he finished the wheel. Mabel hopped down and patted his back. "I'll be sure to whack Bill a few times for you, bro-bro."

  
She winked and he smiled a little. They shared an Awkward Sibling Hug for good luck. And then she was off. Dipper knelt down, flanked by a small contigent of Far Frozen. His role was important, probably the most important of all. If he didn't manage it, Bill would remain free to eventually destroy whatever dimension he came across. With a fire in his eyes he set to work, doing his best to ignore the sounds of fighting.

  
~*~

  
Even with Clockwork's control of time the battle was difficult. Bill had damaged the dimension's reality to the point normal laws no longer held sway; if they ever really had. Forcing him to rely on more basic abilities, as powerful as they were. Frostbite and Nocturne, with their powers drawn from other sources, were having a slightly easier time of it. That wasn't saying much however. Even Frostbite's strongest ice could only slow Bill down.

  
Danny and Mabel had their own task, keeping Bill off balance as much as possible. This was made a little easier as Danny's speed let him weave between the flying stones, bringing his passenger in close to strike with barbed-wire covered, charm-loaded baseball bat (a gift from Grunkle Stan). Toby and Jeff stayed on the ground, where the wind was weaker, and focused on physically attacking Bill; forcing him to use his rapidly draining magic to heal the injuries. With the constant onslaught Bill was unable to focus his efforts in any one direction. This difficulty was made all the worse by the injury to his heart; which was leaking magic like a sieve.

  
Suffering on all sides Bill finally had enough. With a wordless cry he lashed out with all the magic he had left. The burst tossing everyone away. Danny curled around Mabel to protect her and took a nasty blow to the side as a result. Jeff and Toby were sent rolling along the ground a fair distance; dirty and bruised but alright. Nocturne rose up to full height to shield them all from the aftershocks.

  
In the brief quiet Bill started to laugh. Then he began drawing directly on the Nightmare dimension's power to keep him going; drawing it into his weeping heart. This did him no favors; making his body practically rot. But his effort would be in vain as a new wind began to rise. One that carried with it all the rage and destructive power nature had to offer. Jeff laughed as it blew passed him, already tearing apart Bill's storm. The tornado of madness looking like a child's pinwheel in its grasp. The wind was followed by a flood, waves of Ink cresting over the land and combining with the newcomer to form a waterspout of nature's fury. "About damn time ya got here, Typhoon. Was startin' to think ya'd gone back on your word!"

  
Wind and waves surrounded Bill in a choking grip. Jeff could see the tiny bodies of hundreds of Campers, mindlessly resilient as ever, once again clambering around on Bill. Typhoon held him still while EAT dissolved the stones that had been flying around. Jeff slowly sat up, body now making his various aches known, and found himself with a rather hysterical thought. _'They work pretty well together. If I were in the business of matchmakin' I'd set 'em up.'_

  
The very idea scared even him. So he kept that one to himself for later, and instead called back to Dipper. "Hope ya got that circle ready; 'cause we aint' gettin' a better shot!"

  
Mabel extricated herself from Danny, taking a second to check on him. His leg would be sore and he would probably have the mother of all headaches later, but he was standing; ready to defend, as always. She wanted to bandage his leg, to keep him from injuring it further. But with a nudge from him she ran to her brother. He showed her the finished wheel and they went to work.

  
Dipper and Mabel drew out the wheel with practiced ease; Mabel sketching in the runes they needed. Once finished she took long, careful steps out to watch her brother put in the symbols; the key to the whole thing.

  
Some were easy to put together; her star and his tree, the crown and shield, and a gear medallion. Some took a little thinking, like Toby's flower and the blackened square covered in crystals glittering like the night sky. Nocturne's time of power. Once the connections were made it was easy to see the logic in them. Only Jeff's symbol left her baffled, in spite of it's simplicity. An upside-down triangle with a circular hole inside. When she did recognize it she was surprised by Dipper's choice.

  
"Grunkle Ford's portal?"

  
Dipper used the last of the chalk to reinforce some broken lines. "Think about it. Jeff is the embodiment of Abnormal; weirdness itself. Weirdness comes from everywhere; so why shouldn't his mark be a door that goes anywhere? After all, he already has the Rift which can do nearly that."

  
Mabel's eyes went big, sparkling like an over-complicated video game girlfriend. She threw her arms around him joyfully. "That's perfect! You're a genius, Dipper!" When she let him go she punched him lightly. "I told you you'd get it."

  
With the last lines closed, and the wheel secure they directed everyone to their places. A glance over his shoulder told Dipper this was truly their last chance. Bill was already beginning to break free from EAT's hold. Even Typhoon was struggling; forcing their winds to greater speeds. With the howling storm at their backs they took their stand. Jeff with Toby, Nocturne and Clockwork together, Mabel and Dipper side by side like always. Danny formed the final link in the chain; connecting Nocturne with Dipper. Body, mind, and spirit all together.

  
As their hands joined the circle began to glow. The eye of Bill's image went dark and a vortex of pure power reached out, grabbing Bill and pulling him down towards it. The raging demon began to shrink as the last dregs of his life were drained away. The symbols pulsed brighter as more of his energy was contained. Then, when Bill had nothing left, his image crumbled away as the inner circle was swallowed. Leaving only the signs and their occupants.

  
Bill's body was plucked to pieces, brick by brick; blue flame spurting briefly from each like blood. Finally, when the last of him had been consumed, the wheel vanished. And with it went the consciousness of the humans standing in it. Danny stumbled, fighting unconsciousness, as his power fluctuated wildly. Much of it having been swallowed by the wheel. He was barely aware of the ground beginning to shake. EAT and Typhoon rushed past them, howling their warnings as they fled for their Domains.

  
All that remained was the nightmare portal. But instead of shrinking, it began to grow. The sky started crumbling away like stone. Frostbite began gathering his armies. "The outburst of energy was too great. The dimension is collapsing, we must retreat!"

  
Jeff struggled to move, dragging his aching body towards Toby as the shards of reality fell around him. He curled around him to shield him before blacking out himself. The last things his mind registered were a blanket of the night sky surrounding them, and the faint burst of lime in the back of his mouth.

  
Nocturne gathered the remaining blacked out heroes in his arms. Following Clockwork, who had Danny, closely as he managed to open a door to reality. Beyond the portal was the neighborhood where it all began, bathed in slowly softening moonlight as the skies cleared. The streets looked decidedly worse for wear as Dorathea's men busied themselves putting out fires and clearing out the rest of the aggressive monsters. In among them were other creatures and humans, looking just as ragged as the Princess and her army.

  
She was just directing a tall, clown looking figure holding a chunk of cement towards its matching hole in the sidewalk when she heard them. She turned to look and her ear fins perked up as she saw them. "Goodness this whole thing has been an incredible mess. Now, would you be so kind as to help out here for a little? I'll take care of this lot for you."

  
Not waiting for an answer, Dora swept the group up and carried them off for medical attention. Leaving the rest to simply gape for a moment before shrugging it off to assist the efforts. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fight scenes in movies always seem so fast and disjointed to me. I wanted to try and get that feeling across in this chapter. Here's hoping I succeeded.


	56. The True Age of Weird is Born

The first thing Dipper felt was a cold, and decidedly unpleasant, wet thing being dragged across his face. He opened his eyes to one final lick from Danny, who whined happily, and directed his attention skyward. Licking Mabel awake too so she could see. He didn't even stop to notice how his vision was suddenly completely clear.

  
"Woah." The twins stared in awe as a full grown Strider walked overhead; a Wub-beast right beside it. A flock of the Convocation flew around its head, playing with the buttons and dials.

  
"I know I said things were gonna be different, but this is a whole other level. Looks like the two of ya are gonna be pret-ty busy from now on." Jeff said, leaning on grip of that huge knife.

  
Toby peeked out behind him. "B-but you won't be doing it alone."

  
"Yeah with the realms this close together it will take all of us to keep things straight." Danny whispered, still watching the strange creatures cavorting in the sky.

  
"Pff, that's easy. Ya'll know how to call me." He winked at Mabel, handing her a copy of his sigil. "Just don't burn it this time. That shit hurt, y'know."

  
A Far Frozen medic and Eyeless Jack moved in to check them all over. Jeff complained through the whole thing; claiming he just needed a nap. Eyeless wasn't buying it though, and held him down for a full examination. Finally they got the a-okay from the two doctors and set to work helping clean up the remainder of the chaos. With a little luck the only signs of any change would be the new fauna moving in. As they worked Danny saw Jeff looking the rune knife over.

  
"So are you going to keep that knife?"

  
Jeff hefted the blade only to drop it on the ground. "Nah, it's cool as fuck but a pain in the ass to use. I ain't an anime, after all. But I think I'll let the Foundation mess with it. 'Bout time they had somethin' of mine to actually test."

  
Underneath the chatter of the crowd another sound reached their ears, a low screaming. Dipper shouted a warning and pointed towards a tiny nightmare portal opening. But it didn't grow any larger. In fact all it did was spit out a small black object and close with a cartoonish pop. Everyone gathered to stare at it. Lying on the ground was single object. All that was left of the once feared Bill Cipher. . .

  
A simple black top hat. Jeff picked it up.

  
"Think it's a good idea to keep that thing?" Dipper asked. Jeff put on a show of flipping it around before tossing it on his head. The hat stood out starkly against his dirty and torn hoodie, somehow still floating. Yet it did so in a way that worked.

  
~*~

  
It took the rest of the night, but the neighborhood was clean and fixed back up like nothing had happened. With plenty of time before sunrise. Of course, the process had been helped enormously by Clockwork freezing time since he could do so again. Task completed, Princess Dora sent some of her men back to get food for a feast. They ate on the back lawn of the Pines' house, on a collection of blankest Danny dragged out. Never was there a more motley gathering of faces, all talking together and enjoying simply existing. Though Nocturne took more than one curious look at the faceless being that sat at the far end of the blankets. It had arrived in the middle of the repairs and simply taken directions without a word.

  
The creature looked up at him and simply stated."Slenderman, pleasure to meet you."

  
That was all he said as his focus went back to Jeff. The Fear was curled in his lap and talking non-stop, fired up on adrenaline still. Though it was obvious his energy was flagging.

  
The celebration lasted for hours of frozen time. Giving them all plenty of chances to meet and greet, and simply share gossip between worlds. But midway through the party Dipper slipped away, looking for some quiet. Danny followed shortly after. They sat in companionable silence, only interrupting the peace to say goodbye as the revelers dispersed; Clockwork releasing his grip on time to let the day come. Danny settled around him as they watch the sun rise on an entirely new life. 

(Months Later)

Autumn and Winter passed calmly; only interrupted briefly by the havoc of finals. The twins finished the year with flying colors; despite the world-ending distractions. Dipper even managed to finish compiling all his notes; a feat on it's own, not counting the hundreds of new creatures that had been added. With help from BEN. And soon came their favorite season.

  
Summer.

  
The Speedy Beaver bus dropped them off with its usual reliability, and cloud of smoke. As soon as they were off they ran to the Mystery Shack. Being kidnapped by Bill had forced the older Pines twins to semi-retire for the season to recover. Something Stan complained about endlessly. But they welcomed them with open arms as always.

  
The day after Dipper and Mabel had unpacked (in the attic room because where else would they be?), and Mabel had jumped on the bed for a half hour, Ford had taken them out to the woods to show them a surprise. As they walked they saw the trees change, the wood slowly blackening. But not out of illness.

  
In the center of the changed trees they spotted a manor. A huge dog was playing with a little girl in the yard. Even Danny was there, rolling on the soft, green grass. And watching them from the step was Jeff, he waved at them, but he didn't look too happy. Mabel tackled him in a patented Mabel Cheer Up Hug (trademarked) and Dipper followed after. He gave a snort of laughter when he got close enough to notice Jeff's new accessory. He struggled not to fall over laughing when he saw just what it was.

  
Jeff was wearing a radio collar. The very same used by wildlife researchers on animals. He looked about as happy as a dog in the Cone of Shame with it too.

  
"So um, pff, what's with the necklace?" Dipper snorted, trying to stop his laughter as Jeff shot him a dirty look.

  
BEN popped up beside him, having used the electrical current of the tracker as a shortcut. "The Foundation was super pissed when he got back. Yeah, apparently saving the entire universe is less importantly than maintaining the integrity of a dimension they had been studying for decades. Could probably stand to get their priorities straight. Anyways, Jeff is pretty much under house arrest now. Has to wear that because they nuked their main facility, so they're kind of stuck on low tech for a while. Now he has to stay at the manor, but they didn't say anything about the manor staying put so we're here on vacation!"

  
He leaned in, pulling Mabel and Dipper close to whisper. "Plus, Slender isn't exactly unhappy about the arrangement." He pulled back with a wink and a staticky chuckle.

  
~*~

  
They stayed there most of the day, happy to see their new friends and doing what they could to help them settle in and make sense of the place. On the walk back Dipper waved to Mabel and headed for Scuttlebutt Island with Danny at his side. They spent their time cuddling together, away from the teasing catcalls of the rest of the Pines. Even the beavers were quiet; knowing how important it was to their unofficial leader.

  
Which is how dawn found them. Danny laying on the beach with Dipper on his tail to keep him away from the cold ground. The two of them watched the growing sunlight bounce on the lake. "I doubt you've missed it in the short time you've been back, but a lot has changed in Gravity Falls; lot of new monsters moving in and such. Are you ready for that?"

  
"I think we can handle it." He answered, a smile on his face as he leaned in to kiss Danny.

  
Danny said nothing, only pressing closer to him. He returned it happily, sending a low purr rumbling across the water.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With this we've reached the end of the tale once again. Sadly, this will be the last we see of Danny and the twins for a while. Though I have a Jeff focused series in the works.   
> I don't know when I'll start on that though. As I plan to take a nice long break after this. I think I've earned it!  
> In the meantime, thanks again for reading and for all the support! I hope you'll keep reading my stories because I'm sure they'll keep improving.


End file.
